


Rain's Wish

by Rainwish52



Series: Rainwish's Story [1]
Category: Animal Jam (Video Game), Warriors - Erin Hunter
Genre: Cats, F/M, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, StormClan, Streamclan, thornclan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-01
Updated: 2021-02-21
Packaged: 2021-03-01 16:55:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 52
Words: 48,866
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23940403
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rainwish52/pseuds/Rainwish52
Summary: A full documentary of a quiet yet clever warrior who refuses to simply disappear.
Relationships: Aquafrost | Thunderclaw | Froststar | Pinestar / Rainwish | Greyspot | Rainstar, Original Character(s)/Original Character(s)
Series: Rainwish's Story [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1725748
Kudos: 12





	1. Introduction

Hello! Thank you for deciding to read Rain’s Wish. This is a story that’s always been dear to me that I’ve been meaning to write down for years, so I really appreciate your hits and kudos. Please do NOT use any of these characters in any way without my permission (you can ask but you probably won't get permission unless you can prove you were a part of the roleplay). 

This is a written version of a Warriors roleplay on a game called Animal Jam that occurred over the span of June 2014 to the last week of July 2015. My character I made was given the name Rainwish; this is where my username for most sites comes from! I’ve recorded here all I remember along with some help from Eagleshine, another cat that was there with me. Since I only have one other memory source besides myself I can’t promise you that every detail will ever be included or remembered. I’ve done my very best to fit together all I recall to make a cohesive plot. There’s definitely a lot of editing to do even when this is complete as I think it’s pretty obvious I’m faster at dialogue than descriptions. The main goal for now is to have a story; this is currently in a rough draft state. When the final draft is complete this introduction will be edited to say so. I hope you enjoy it regardless of that!

One more thing. If you or someone you know happens to recognize any events or names at all or any username listed in Endnotes, the very last chapter, I ask that you please contact me. I would honestly cry tears of joy if you’re an old clanmate. Your input and memories are always welcome to make things as complete as possible! You can find me on most sites as rainwish52. Thank you again for reading! It’s a relief to finally start on this project.

\- ae51021


	2. Prologue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Note to self: I've got to do some editing to this chapter in the future. Not much will change it just needs a bit more.)

For a moment, it appeared to the grey tabby that the floodwater would crash over her, but her life was spared merely by a quick leap onto a not-so-stable log. _My kits!_

Ahead of her, her mate had two of them protectively in his jaws and the third on his back. “There you are! Come on,” he panted. “We need to get out of here.”

 _I shouldn’t have gone hunting,_ the dark she-cat thought as she took her daughter by the scruff off of the blue-grey tom’s back. _I didn’t find anything, and they’ll be nothing left after this downpour anyway!_

The two raced through the forest together, frequently stopping to dodge deep puddles of mud. “The river will overflow any moment now. No, it already has,” she gasped, her kit’s fluff muffling her. “We should go toward the Twolegplace.”

“They’d never help us,” her mate growled.

“Don’t growl at our babies,” she shot back. “I don’t want them to remember this day.”

“They can’t anyway. They’re too young,” he huffed. His mate wanted to swipe at his tattered ear with sheathed claws, but before she realized what was happening, the river lunged toward them at an astonishing speed and swept her kit away, far from her fangs forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> back at it again on AO3 on another giant project that'll take me forever to finish 👍 also no chapter titles this time or summaries cuz traditional warrior cats books don't have those and I honestly don't feel like putting em this time around. anyways it's been years and it's finally time to finish this.
> 
> animal jam is a wack game (and they changed it to animal jam classic the other day? weird flex but ok)


	3. StreamClan Allegiances

**StreamClan**

**Leader** : Pinestar \- big white tom whose fur is stained with mud and blood. He has many battle scars and has blind, ice-blue eyes with misty pupils.

 **Apprentice:** Rainpaw

**Deputy** : Mapleshine \- long-legged light brown she-cat with ivory tabby stripes and amber-orange eyes.

**Medicine Cat** : Leaftail \- grey-and-white she-cat with green eyes.

**Warriors** : 

Dragonheart \- big black and white tom with amber eyes and many scars.

Nightfang \- black and grey tom with blue eyes.

Redclaw \- red-brown tabby tom with amber eyes.

Fireclaw \- dark ginger tom with green eyes.

Icefur \- pure white she-cat with blue eyes.

Rainclaw \- dark grey tom with lighter spots and green eyes.

Blackstripe \- black tabby tom with blue eyes.

Greytail \- light grey tom with a darker grey tail and amber eyes.

**Apprentices** : 

Rainpaw \- dark blue-grey she-cat with ice-blue eyes; formally a loner.

**Queens:**

Ravenwing  \- black she-cat with a white underbelly, paws and tail tip, and yellow eyes; mother of a rogue’s kit: Blazekit, a black and white she-kit with amber eyes.

**Outside of StreamClan**

Rockbreeze \- grey tabby she-cat with white splotches and blue eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I obviously can't remember every single cat from the long-ago roleplay, but if I remember any names I'll put em here. I'll also be doing a second (and maybe third?) allegiance page later on to help y'all keep up with cat descriptions. Just assume there's a lot more cats in the clan than mentioned here.


	4. Chapter 1

The she-cat pushed her way through the ferns, listening to the wind whispering through the trees. Above, the afternoon sun shone quietly through the leaves, allowing light to drift in splotches on her dark, blue-grey fur.

She didn’t know where she was going, or where she would end up. She simply padded along, sniffing for prey that she was capable of hunting. It wasn’t until she heard paw steps from afar that she, at last, silenced her lone step.

The large tom that emerged from the shadows of the forest was a cat like none other before. His fur was pure white, but it was stained with ash, mud, blood, and scars. Two eyes of palest sky rested upon her own ice-blue, reflecting and mirroring alone.

“Greetings.” The tom’s voice was compelling, yet thoughtful. His long whiskers twitched as he gazed down at her. “Who are you?”

“I…” _He’s so big!_ The loner did her best to stand a little taller. “I don’t know.”

He seemed as perplexed as she was, if not suspicious. “Where’s your kin?”

“I don’t have any.”

“Really?” He tilted his head to one side, contemplating. “Are you sure about that?”

“Yes,” she replied. “I would know if any other cats were around here.”

“Observant you are,” he mused. The she-cat wondered what he was pondering as the bushes parted to reveal another cat. This one was white with light grey splotches and curious green eyes.

“I see you found someone,” she mewed, dipping her head respectfully to the tom.

“So I did.” He stepped forward to stand directly in front of the she-kit. “What’s your name?”

“I don’t have one.”

“Then I’ll just have to give you one myself. I am Pinestar, leader of the newly formed Streamclan,” he meowed. “And this is Leaftail, the medicine cat. We’re currently looking for new members.” Pinestar nodded towards the slope in the distance, where woodland turned to swamp. “Come with me, and I’ll give you a name to be proud of.”

 _I don’t see why not,_ she thought as he turned away, Leaftail following. She padded after him through the wilderness.

“What would you like your prefix to be?” he asked after a while, slowing his pace to walk step-by-step with her. “Arachnidpaw? Rainpaw?”

“Rainpaw.” _Rainpaw._ She repeated it a few times in her head. “I like it.”

~~~~~

The reeds parted to allow the three felines to enter the camp. It rested near a river, and many cats were swarming around, either building dens or just getting to know one another. Despite the chaos, the stranger felt right at home.

“Welcome to Streamclan,” Pinestar meowed as he padded ahead of her to an ancient pine log covered with moss that had long been resting in the center of the place. “Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the pine for a clan meeting!”

A black-and-white she-cat brushed past and glanced back at the new member briefly. Another she-cat with light brown fur and ivory tabby stripes, who had long legs gave her a friendly nod. _She looks like Pinestar. Same face._

Another black-and-white cat padded by, though he was tall as the leader and had scars all over his pelt. A black tom with light grey splotches shaped like crescent moons went to join the first she-cat, and Leaftail sat at the edge of the crowd, washing her feathery brown tail.

Pinestar motioned with a flick of his tail for the small she-cat to stand at the foot of the log. “From this day forward, until you have earned your warrior name, you, a former loner, will be known as Rainpaw.” His gaze swept over the crowd, though his eyes saw nothing. “I, Pinestar, will be your mentor.”

He leaped down neatly from his perch and touched noses with her. Rainpaw felt happiness surge through her, knowing now she had a purpose. _I’m so thankful I don’t have to wander through those woods by myself anymore._

“I’ll do my best for you,” she promised her new mentor, her tail curling. Pinestar blinked in her direction kindly as the breeze ruffled their pelts and their clanmates sang her new name.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rainpaw is over a year old. She's curious and excited as she's always been a loner and has never had anyone else (as far as she remembers). Pinestar has always been a really big cat. Like, really big, even as a kit. I can't exactly remember his age, but he's around a few years.


	5. Chapter 2

Rainpaw watched a maple leaf dance until it landed on her tail-tip. Pinestar was still standing next to her, clearly in thought.

“What do we do now?” she asked, flicking the leaf back into the sky. It fluttered on the wind, straight onto her mentor’s muzzle. “Oops.”

“I wish to introduce you to my kin.” Pinestar flicked the leaf back to her. “Och aye the noo, that is the wrong maple.”

He turned towards the she-cat waiting impatiently nearby, nodding calmly in the direction of the brown-and-white tabby. “This is my sister and the clan deputy, Mapleshine.”

“Hey! Is this Rainpaw?” Mapleshine’s amber eyes were warm, the color of the red tree leaf she was named after. “Be careful! You’re so small, Pinestar might accidentally step on you.”

 _No way! He was so careful on the way here… And I’m an average sized adult cat._ Rainpaw opened her mouth to protest, but Pinestar swished his tail over her muzzle to stop her. “Mapleshine, it’s time for me to go searching for more cats. Rainpaw, I want you to gather moss with my sister for your nest in the apprentice’s den.”

Rainpaw nodded solemnly. “I will!”

The two she-cats watched their leader disappear through the reed and fern tunnel. “Don’t worry. He’s just trying to look intimidating and humorless. Trust me, he is the exact opposite of that.” Mapleshine padded after him, and Rainpaw followed suit.

“I never knew the world was so big.”

“Really? Our wee clan is just one small part of it,” the deputy laughed, bounding away in the opposite direction of her brother. “And Streamclan isn’t very big yet, no? 

“I wouldn’t know. I was a loner as long as I can remember.” _I wonder what my own kin are like._

“Pinestar and I have been surrounded by cats our whole lives, even as rogues ourselves. Aye, here’s some nice moss for ye. Watch out for burrs!”

~~~~~

The moss was soft as Rainpaw curled up in it for the first time. _I didn’t know I could be so happy._

The apprentice dozed off for a bit, inhaling the scents around her, learning each one.

Rainpaw opened her eyes to discover her mentor’s tough but kind expression looming above her. “Yes,” she meowed.

“I dinnae ask if your nest was a success yet.” His eyes seemed to look, to seek to understand despite their inability. “Come along. I want to show you the rest of the territory before sundown.”

 _Wow. Is this still day one? Did we really only meet just past sunhigh?_ Pinestar was already making his way out of the den, and Rainpaw quickly followed, shaking the scraps of moss from her pelt. “What’s it like, living a warrior life? Why do you choose to be in large groups instead of alone?”

“You ask so many questions,” the big tom mused. The two felines brushed aside the reeds and ferns at the camp entrance. “That is a simple yet mystifying question, one that ye must answer for yerself when the hour ends.” 

“Oh. That is so deep.”

He shrugged. “That is how I chose to think of life.”

~~~~~

Rainpaw hesitantly placed her paw into the water, letting it flow through her fur. “I’ve never tried swimming before.”

“It’s not difficult,” Pinestar promised. It had been almost a half moon since he had taken her into Streamclan, and she had been reluctant to splash. _I want to practice more hunting and fighting moves._ “Dinnae ye want yer trout?”

“I assume I’m supposed to answer yes,” Rainpaw meowed, flicking her tail in his face. Pinestar instinctively ducked his head. “Are you sure Dragonheart is watching?”

“Aye,” her mentor replied, without even sniffing for the other tom’s scent. “I told ye, ma wee bairn is here to make sure I dinnae mess this up.”

The large black-and-white tom was sitting on a rock nearby, rolling his amber eyes. “Maybe we shouldn’y have settled near a stream.”

“It’s better and safer here, and ye ken it.” The clan leader brushed past his apprentice and waded away. “Move yer legs an’ paws like this. Relax yer body. Ye must become one with the loch.”

Rainpaw followed Pinestar into the stream. The water was cold around her, despite the greenleaf sun above. “Does it freeze in leafbare?”

“It might. Not that A cannae see it anymore. Come along, the deepest end is over here. Stay close to me.” The two cats swam along the reeds, and Rainpaw enjoyed the peace by his side.

“How can you swim safely, without being able to see danger?”

Pinestar chuckled. “Ma other senses. Ma hearing reaches far, and I feel the vibrations of my surroundings. If ye ever know a cat that goes blind, tell them that.”

“I will,” she promised. “Can we catch a fish here?”

“Aye, we can dive under. I prefer fishing by the shore, but ye should ken how.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> He's really Scottish at times. All his kin are.


	6. Chapter 3

Rainpaw shook the water from her fur with a fluffy shake, drenching Dragonheart the moment she stepped out of the stream with her prey. “Thank ye, ’paw.”

The fish fell from her mouth. _Oops!_ “Sor-Hey!” Rainpaw and the black-and-white tom both ducked as Pinestar arose from the blue and took his turn at drying himself.

“I sincerely apologize. A cannot see ye both.” The leader turned his head in his apprentice’s direction. _It’s almost as if he really CAN see me! He’s really, really good at faking it._ “Did ye like it? Considering the environment around us, we must adapt to it well.”

“I LOVED IT! When can we hunt here again?” The trout hung limply from her jaws once more as her eyes glittered with pride and admiration. “You’re neat.”

The big tom laughed. “I’m flattered you think so, but-” His head shot up and turned in the direction of the border at the sound of a rustle.

Pinestar’s sky-blue orbs narrowed across the way, past the river that wasn’t too far from the stream it contributed to. His son’s amber seemed to blaze through the sunset’s rays as Dragonheart too sniffed the air. Standing next to each other, there was no doubt these two were related; they had the same muscular shoulders and figure.

“What’s going on?” Rainpaw squeezed in between them and looked around. “Is there danger? An enemy clan? Is it foxes?”

“Shh,” Pinestar hissed, leaning forward a bit. “Dragonheart, can you spot them?”

“It’s probably HER again,” he grumbled. “If she wants to join us, she can, but she won’t, so she keeps coming over here anyway. ROCKBREEEEEEEZE!”

“YES?” The bushes were swung aside to reveal a tall white she-cat with grey tabby splotches and sharp blue eyes. “Can I assist you, Dragonheart?”

“What NOW?”

“Hi, what’s going on over here?” The deputy stuck her head out from the foliage behind them. “YOU!!!”

The two she-cats leapt at each other and started aggressively wrestling on the other side of the water. “Mousedung, not again,” Pinestar muttered. “Cannae you two get along for a sunset? Mapleshine, that’s our NIECE!”

“Wow, your kin are so interesting,” Rainpaw beamed. “I stumbled into the right cats!”

Dragonheart snorted. “I’m going to stop them, if you don’t mind,” he meowed to his father, rolling his eyes. “Yer ‘wee bairn’ has his many battle scars.”

Mapleshine slammed Rockbreeze to the ground. “You bih-”

“No swearing near the actual wee bairn apprentice!” Dragonheart yowled as he joined the fray. Rainpaw watched in awe. 

“This is the most suspenseful thing I have ever seen. And I’m not ‘wee’,” the she-cat mewed. “Pinestar, why are they fighting?”

He bowed his great head and sighed, “I don’t know anymore. Honest.”

 _He didn’t say ‘dinnae ken’ this time. Wow._ “Is Rockbreeze planning on joining Streamclan?”

“I wish she would, so we wouldn’t have to deal with her unexpected visits. She’s had a hard life as of now, just as the rest of her kin.” Pinestar opened his mouth to yowl. Every cat froze, even Rainpaw, and his kin backed away from each other slowly.

“Don’t think I cannae sense your pain. Stop this nonsense,” he growled, his powerful muscles rippling under his thick and matted pelt. “Yer all acting like kits!”

Mapleshine’s tail slashed the air, clearly still itching for a fight. Dragonheart was even angier, a noticeable difference between him and his calm father. Rockbreeze was one of the grumpiest cats Rainpaw had ever seen.

“Umm…” the small blue-grey she-cat mewed hesitantly, “Why are you fighting? In the first place, I mean.”

Pinestar rested his tail on her shoulders. “Dinnae fash about them. Yer safe wit me.”

His blind eyes were kind despite the chaos around them. “I will always keep you safe.”

Rockbreeze made a fake coughing noise. “Ahem. Pinestar, who’s this?”

“Ah. This is Rainpaw, my apprentice. Rainpaw, this is Rockbreeze, my sister Pinefall’s daughter and a warrior… of Thunderclan.” The leader’s ears flicked towards the dark-grey-and-white tabby. “Why have you come?”

Dark blue eyes glittered sadly in the sunlight. “Because I still can.”

“What’s Thunderclan? I’ve never scented another clan near our borders,” Rainpaw interrupted. “Where is it? Why can’t you leave it?”

“That’s NONE of your business. YER the kit here,” the big she-cat snarled. “Get OOT!”

“NO!” The apprentice boldly stepped in front of her, much to the other warriors’ shock. “You’re not even a Streamclan cat! This is MY territory!”

“Rockbreeze, if ye dinnae have anything to say, please, for the sake of our Auroraclan ancestors, go ‘home’,” Mapleshine agreed. “Go lick Darkstar’s paws for all I care.”

“Fine. But dinnae think this battle will ever be over.” Rockbreeze glared at Rainpaw. “And dinnae drag this poor scrap of fur into it. And Dragonheart, stop giving me that face. I remember clearly when ye were a tiny scrap yerself. If a kit of Thunderclaw can be considered as such.”

“Don’t call me that.” To Rainpaw’s surprise, Pinestar padded up and brushed his pelt with his niece’s. Rockbreeze’s fur twitched. “Yer a good cat at heart. Dinnae let grief claw it apart, like others.”

Mapleshine and Dragonheart exchanged a look, before joining in the embrace. _Should I join?_ Rainpaw wondered. _Maybe no-_

A brown and white tail swept her into the family. The deputy was purring with the cat she’d attacked only moments before. “We may have similar blood, but it is our choice to decide to live by it,” Pinestar explained. “Kin is kin, even though vengeance and despair reigns. Light and dark cannae exist without one another, despite the divide.”

~~~~~

“Tell me more about Thunderclan,” Rainpaw asked when the hunt was done with. She and Pinestar were sharing a salmon in the shadow of the fallen tree. “And the Aurorasomethings.”

“The Auroraclan Ancestors. I’ll start from the beginning,” he meowed. The giant tom’s feelings of contentedness yet sorrowfulness fell onto the average sized she-cat’s fur in waves. “Long ago, there were five clans. Auroraclan was the biggest and strongest of them all, and had everything a cat could want. Its last leader, Aurastar, was my father. He was blue-grey, just like ye, but with white paws.”

“My mother Oakflower had his four kits: Maplekit, Darkkit, Pinekit, and Aquakit. I was Aquakit, not Pinekit. I named myself Pinestar instead of Aquastar when I founded this clan because Pinefall died last leafbare.”

“I’m sorry,” Rainpaw mewed. “That must be awful, losing a littermate.”

Pinestar nodded, gazing at everything around them and nothing at all. “You would’ve loved her. She was a tabby like Mapleshine, but her stripes were black and her fur a darker brown with white speckles. She was much more peaceful too,” he chuckled. “I miss her.”

“Me too.”

“Really?” Surprise edged his voice. “You never knew her.”

“True, but I can sense the emotions you had for her. I don’t think I would need to sit next to you to know,” meowed Rainpaw. “I may be new here, but I know things.”

“I have never doubted it,” purred Pinestar. “Your paws are trending a path with parallels to my own. We are lucky they crossed, at the proper hour.”

_And I couldn’t be more grateful for that._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Little side note: Pinestar knows what cats look like because he asks Mapleshine or another member of his kin, that's why he knows Rainpaw is blue-grey.


	7. Chapter 4

“Mapleshine took pretty much every physical trait besides height from Oakflower,” Pinestar meowed. “I take after Aurastar mostly. Pinefall and Darkheart are smaller cats.”

“You mean Darkstar, the Thunderclan leader?”

“Yes. He’s a tiny black tom with red eyes, and a cat ye wouldn’t ever want to pick a battle with.”

“Do you fight with him?”

“I wish we dinnae quarrel. When we were kits we weren’t rivals until the attack.” Pinestar paused and turned his head in the direction of the evening patrol. “How was the hunt?”

“Excellent. Prey has been running so, so well this greenleaf.” Rainpaw looked up at the black-and-white she-cat, catching her eye. “How’s your apprentice’s training going, Pinestar?”

“Oh, Rainpaw is learning everything so quickly. I may as well teach her extra,” he purred. “How’s your daughter?”

Ravenwing paused, swishing her tail in the grass. “Blazekit… is fine.”

A flash of doubt appeared on the leader’s face, but it disappeared as soon as it came. “I’m glad to hear that.”

Ravenwing’s black-and-white paw scratched the ground. She glanced one last time at the blue-grey she-cat laying next to her clan leader. “I should be going.”

She slithered away, past other warriors, towards the nursery. “Is Blazekit her only kit?”

“As far as I know, yes. Perhaps it’s better that way.” Pinestar got up and stretched, being careful not to knock Rainpaw with his enormous size. “She came to Streamclan with her little one not long before you did.”

 _Why for the better?_ the apprentice wondered. “Where are you going?”

“To hunt,” Pinestar meowed simply.

“Why? They just came back with prey.”

“I ken. But sometimes, I hunt all night for whatever clan I reside in. I must do my best for my fellow clanmates, even as they sleep.”

 _Oh._ “That’s really kind of you. Even after a whole day of training?”

“Yer certainly a fiery one,” he laughed. “But it’s nothing A cannae handle.”

~~~~~

More days of training passed, and Rainpaw wondered whether greenleaf sun would ever set. _I have never been happier to be a Streamclan cat._

Two brothers, Fireclaw and Redclaw, had been hunting with her and Mapleshine. “I’ve never seen such a great hunter,” the deputy meowed as the four made their way back to camp. “My brother has trained you well, though yer a bit overdue for yer warrior ceremony…”

“Really? I’ve enjoyed his company,” mewed Rainpaw, her ears flicking up in surprise. “I’ll miss his presence.”

Mapleshine started laughing. “You’re still be in the same clan, for our ancestors’ sake! I doubt he’ll stop hovering above you anytime soon.”

“You think so?”

“Aye. He truly believes yer a special cat, one that will change the clan for the better. Ye have already done so.” The brown-and-white tabby leapt over a small stream. “Thank you.”

“For what? What did I do?”

“I dinnae ken if he told ye, but our sister Pinefall died not long before you came to us. Ye have eased our grief.” She brushed aside the reeds and ferns at the entrance of the camp. “Let’s put our catch on the pile.”

After placing her trout and mouse, Rainpaw heard scurrying from the medicine den. Curious, she peaked past the draping moss to observe.

“Can’t you fix her?!” Ravenwing snarled, her arching back facing the apprentice. “What’s wrong with her?”

“There isn’t an official name for it that I know of,” Leaftail meowed quickly, leaning towards the small cat beside her. “I’ve given Blazekit thyme to ease the shock of the seizure, but I can’t make it magically go away. I’m not Starclan.”

A small kit who was the spitting image of her mother, minus eyes a darker orange, was digging her claws into the ground as her body trembled. “Can’t something be done? Surely you’d know what Starclan would do, since you’re the medicine cat.” Ravenwing’s mew was a hushed growl.

Leaftail shook her head, sighing, “I may have a connection with starry warriors, but that doesn’t mean they share everything little piece of information with me. I’m sorry, Ravenwing, that I can’t do anything more.”

“You’d better be, because if she doesn’t grow out of these fits by the time she’s made an apprentice, I’ll claw your musty pelt off.” The warrior stalked out of the den, and Rainpaw leapt quickly in the shadows to avoid her sharp yellow glare.

Leaftail’s green gaze watched her go. “I’m sorry. I’ve always done my best here in Streamclan,” she muttered. “And I won’t stop now, even if you do tear me apart…” 

Coughing from the three-moon-old kit made her head turn back to her patient. Rainpaw observed silently from a gap in the bracken wall as Leaftail soothingly licked the tiny feline’s forehead. “Shh… It will be alright. Even if your mother doesn’t want to hold you in her arms, it will not be your end. Rest now, okay?”

The apprentice heard Blazekit pad in a circle, before flopping to the ground. “Hungry.”

“I’ll get you something to chew,” Leaftail promised as she stood up. “Too bad Ravenwing’s milk ran out too soon. Not that ye’ve needed it lately anyway. Ye deserve better, poor bairn.”

Rainpaw watched as the medicine cat left her den. “Which ones did you catch?”

“You scented me? Through all the herbs?” the apprentice gasped, pricking her ears. “You must have a really good nose!”

Leaftail laughed, her brown, leafy tail brushing the grass under paw. “Yer muzzle adjusts. If you want to comment someone on their good sense of smell, try your mentor. That tom first caught scent of you a good distance from where we three met.”

“Pinestar is so cool… I hope I become just like him one day,” Rainpaw admitted. “I admire him so much.”

“It’s good to have a cat like him to look up to. I miss my own mentor."

“I’m sorry to hear that,” the blue-grey she-cat meowed as she picked up her trout. “Does Blazekit like fish?”

“She’ll eat anything, including my own tail,” the older cat huffed. She glanced at Ravenwing sulking in the corner of the warriors den. _I did notice earlier that she doesn’t sleep in the nursery… Geez, that’s so unfair to her only kit._ “Thank you for your help.”

“You’re welcome. I’m happy to serve my clan in any way possible.”

Leaftail blinked at Rainpaw kindly. “Don’t worry. Your future will have plenty of that, believe me. You were always meant to be one of us.”


	8. Chapter 5

_I know Pinestar is supposed to watch me in secret during my assessment, but he literally cannot see what I’m doing,_ Rainpaw thought as she stalked a pheasant through the undergrowth of their territory near the endless forest. Once she was close enough, she leapt, and the feathers flew everywhere as a bite to the neck finished the bird. “Gotcha!” _Thank you Starclan and Pinestar’s ancestors for this prey._

Her mentor was waiting for her a few fox-lengths away. “Good job,” he purred. “I always knew ye could do it.”

Rainpaw beamed, her tail fluffed up in happiness. _I can’t wait to know what you’ll name me! Clan names are so neat._

Ravenwing was guarding the camp entrance as they brushed the reeds aside. “Good job,” she mewed stiffly, glancing at Pinestar behind the blue-grey she-cat. “Rainpaw, how many moons did it take you?”

“A few. Just like any clan cat,” she purred, swishing her feathered tail in the other cat’s face. “And to think I was once a rogue with nobody and just some basic hunting and fighting moves.”

“Good for you,” Ravenwing muttered. Pinestar brushed past the black and white warrior without comment.

“She doesn’t like me,” Rainpaw whispered when she was out of earshot. “I don’t know why.”

Pinestar shrugged. “I wouldnae stress. Come along now.” He padded up to the fallen pine and summoned the clan forward. Rainpaw stood before him.

“I, Pinestar, leader of Streamclan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. Although she has spent moons and seasons as a rogue, she has trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend her to you as a warrior in their turn.” Immense pride shown in the tom’s cloudy eyes. “Rainpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?”

“I do,” she meowed, trying to keep her mew steady. _It’s finally time!_

“Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Rainpaw, from this moment on you will be known as Rainwish. StarClan honors your determination, intellect, and we welcome you as a full warrior of Streamclan.”

Pinestar padded forward, resting his muzzle on her head. She licked his shoulder, his stained pelt soft despite how much of a mess it was. As she did so, Rainwish couldn’t help but wonder who his own mentor had been, and the warrior before them. _How far back does this go?_

“Was your mentor your leader, too? Is this… normal?” she asked without moving. “If I were a clan cat from birth to adult, instead of just starting at adult, would I know this?”

“It doesn’t matter where in the world ye come from,” Pinestar meowed solemnly. “You’ve proven yourself to all of us. You’re one of us now, and there’s nothing you can ever do to break apart from that.” He stepped aside to let the other warriors congratulate Rainwish. Mapleshine was purring, and Dragonheart gave her a nod of approval. Ravenwing was nowhere to be found. “No matter what, ye will always have a place here.”

~~~~~

Rainwish was being congratulated by Leaftail when she heard the thump of pawsteps. Rockbreeze was shoving her way through the crowd, hissing at every cat in her way. Rainwish heard multiple sighs behind her.

“What’s all this?” the white-and-grey tabby demanded, thrusting her muzzle in the new warrior’s face. “WHAT IS ALL THIS.”

“Dude,” Rainwish meowed, trying not to flinch. “Why are you like this? I just became a warrior. Chill.”

“I-what?” Rockbreeze peered down at the smaller she-cat. “Yer a tiny blue-grey furball of stupid.”

“Yeah, but rocks are inarguably more boring. I love stepping on them,” she purred, giving the outsider kit-eyes. “And I love throwing them across camp.”

“I need to speak with your… _lovely_ leader,” Rockbreeze growled, blue eyes as fierce as ever. “Out of my way, you lit-” Mapleshine was shoving her niece towards Pinestar. 

“Trees are pretty nice, I think,” Rainwish grinned.

~~~~~

As time went by, Rainwish felt more and more sure of herself and her place in Streamclan. Kits became apprentices, apprentices took their place as warriors, and the young clan steadily grew and became stronger. Icefur had recently moved to the nursery and birthed Fireclaw’s kits, Hailkit and Palekit. Ravenwing’s daughter had become Blazewing, a cat that always seemed to have something dark in her eyes.

Rainwish was dozing in the shade outside of the warriors den when she heard a screech. Green eyes wide, Leaftail came stumbling into the clearing, her entire pelt a bush and her paws leaving scratches in the ground. “What’s wrong?!”

“Do you think Starclan is ever clear?” the medicine cat snarled, locking eyes with the other she-cat. “I need answers, and all they do is send vague omens! How am I supposed to take care of this clan?!”

“Leaftail,” Pinestar meowed, calm as ever as he appeared from his den. The vines slid off his back as he approached her. “Tell me what you saw.”

“It was blurry,” she panted, attempting to smooth her fur. “There was the cry of some kind of bird, and it was really stormy. A tree fell, and there was fire.” She glanced at the other cats watching her with alarm. Blazewing was loudly chewing a blackbird with contempt flaring in her orange eyes. “You think about this. I'll describe it more clearly another time if I can ever calm down after one of these. Goodnight.”

Pinestar rested his tail briefly on her shoulder. “Get some rest,” he suggested. “The sky will clear later.”

“Right,” she muttered, heading off to her herbs in sunlight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> woooo finally an update! I haven't been writing the chapters chronologically and I took a hiatus but we're back now! anyway its 4 AM goodnight


	9. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The seasons:  
> Summer = Greenleaf  
> Autumn = Leaffall  
> Winter = Leafbare  
> Spring = Newleaf

Rainwish slid through the camp entrance, the smell of forest quickly falling back to be replaced by the most repulsive scent she’d ever known. Cats were crowding around the body of a tom named Redclaw, and she could see Leaftail pressing cobwebs against his neck. “What happened?!”

“A fox,” muttered one of the warriors nearby. Fireclaw, his brother, was bleeding in one ear. “We were patrolling together, and out of nowhere this animal came…” The dark ginger tom was still in shock.

“He saved your life,” his mate Icefur meowed, licking his wound. “Be grateful you get to spend more time with our kits.”

“I know,” Fireclaw frowned, glancing at Hailkit and Palekit quietly observing from the nursery. He did his best to hold back his tears. “But I was hoping he’d mentor one of our little ones.”

“I’m sorry,” Rainwish mewed, bowing her head as she approached the medicine den, deciding she’d help Leaftail prepare the warrior for burial. _I don’t know what’s what, but I’ve seen this flower used to disguise disgusting scents._ She gingerly picked up the purple flowers from one of the small ledges with her jaws.

“Watermint,” the grey and white she-cat meowed when Rainwish brought the plant to her. “Thank you.”

“I hope this helps.” She backed away slowly, not wanting to be so close to the fallen warrior. “I wish I could do more.”

“You could become my apprentice,” Leaftail joked. “Though I can’t see you out of all cats tending to wounds all your life.”

Rainwish felt a tail brush her shoulder as Pinestar joined them. She buried her muzzle in his pelt.

“Death is inevitable,” he murmured in her ear, gently taking her aside. “It takes life when it wishes. No cat can stop it.”

“Then what’s the point?” Fireclaw was resting his head on his brother’s side. _Are my own kin dead? What happened to them?_

“We make the point,” he answered. “We do what we can while we can.” Sadness was overflowing the clan, and Rainwish couldn’t help but wonder what cats he was reminded of, warriors of yesterday she would never know. “But we will always see them again in Starclan.” 

~~~~~

Patrols were increased near the area where Redclaw had died, but the fox seemed to have learned its lesson and disappeared. Days after the sudden death, Rainwish was hunting with a few other warriors. It was a bright sunrise, but Rainwish couldn’t help feel that something was off.

Ravenwing was leading them back to camp when they all heard a screech from within. Ravenwing tackled Blazewing head-on as the she-cat attempted to race by them.

“Just where do you think you’re going?” Ravenwing noticed the blood on her daughter's pelt. “What have you DONE?” 

_Who did she attack? Surely not one of our own clanmates?_

Rainwish could sense the shock coming from their camp. She suddenly felt an awful feeling in her chest and raced through the undergrowth to find a crowd of cats near the medicine den. “What happened?!”

“It was Blazewing,” a tom named Blackstripe meowed. He looked spooked. “She attacked Pinestar in his den.”

“What? Why?” Rainwish slid her claws into the ground, pushing aside the other warriors. “How dare she!”

Their leader was resting in one of the many mossy nests Leaftail always had prepared. “I’m alright,” he mewed as Rainwish came in, his fur dappled by the sunlight peeking through the leafy roof. She spotted the herbs on the back of his neck and pressed herself against him. “Hey, it’s okay.”

“How did it happen?!”

He frowned. “I heard her pawsteps, and it was clear she was trying to be elusive. I wasn’t sure why, but the next moment, she had her fangs around my neck. I’m all bruised.” Pinestar lifted his head and nuzzled the she-cat.

“You look defeated,” she muttered, curling her tail around him. “I hate it when you’re upset. But I’m relieved you’re going to be okay.”

“Me too.” 

Ravenwing’s yowl distracted them from their trance. Leaftail stuck her head out from her corner of the den, sighing. “You know, if she’d put even a bit of effort into raising that poor kit, maybe just a moss ball of love and affection, Blazewing probably wouldn’t have done this. Didn’t she ask you to name her after her mother just because she wanted attention?”

"Yes," Pinestar muttered. "She did."

Rainwish could hear the attempted murderer being thrust into the clearing. Ravenwing was swearing words the blue-grey she-cat didn’t know existed. Pinestar slowly got up, and with Rainwish’s support (she was sure he didn’t need it and was just trying to make her feel useful), he came forth to judge.

Ravenwing was spitting in her daughter’s ear as Pinestar climbed on top of the old tree. Rainwish hesitated, but with a flick of his ear she jumped up beside him, though he did not lean against her anymore. Their tails entwined as they sat down, hidden behind the log.

Blazewing flattened herself to the ground and hissed as her leader’s shadow trapped her. Ravenwing finally stopped growling and her gaze flickered to Rainwish, eyes narrowing.

“Blazewing,” Pinestar meowed calmly, “What have you got to say for yourself?”

The sneer on Blazewing’s muzzle was more shocking than how calm their leader appeared to be. _He’s faking it. He’s just as spooked as the rest of us._ “I did it for you, Mother,” she purred.

Every cat turned their fiery gazes to Ravenwing. “What? I didn’t tell you to do anything. I’ve barely even said a word to you this very moon,” she snarled. “Because of how much of a piece of fox-dung you’ve always been.”

Pinestar flattened his ears in disgust. “Ravenwing isn’t to blame for Blazewing’s choice,” he meowed, though a twitch from his tail that Rainwish felt suggested otherwise. “Blazewing, with the spirits of our ancestors at my side I hereby denounce your status as a Streamclan warrior. You are no longer welcome here, and any cat who comes across you on our territory after sunset has my permission to kill you. Do you understand?”

“Sure I do.” Blazewing just shrugged. “I hate every single one of you, but at least I was able to get some attention from Ravenwing before I decided to leave anyway. I’ll gladly disappear, and maybe I’ll make my own clan. Call me Blazestar from now on.” With her final words spoken, she turned her back on Streamclan, pushed her mother aside, and padded off, tail held high.

Pinestar leapt down, signalling the end of the meeting. Rainwish followed, though she stopped when she saw Ravenwing heading straight towards her. “Hi. I’m so-”

The black and white she-cat glared down at her. “He said the spirits of our ancestors were at his side, but it was merely you,” she snorted. “I hope you realize you’re a stupid little furball.”

“Really? I may not have ever been a queen, but I do know how to love a kit properly,” Rainwish hissed. “Pinestar knows it’s your fault.”

“Yes, but he’d never admit it or else he’d break the unity of our clan. That’s the most important thing in keeping one alive,” Ravenwing replied. “Your goal is to keep the clan safe, not a single cat. And I wouldn’t rush yourself when it comes to kits.” She was sneering the same way her daughter had. “You’ve never been a clan cat before this. How old are you?”

“That’s an old question to ask after an insult like that,” the she-cat winced. “I don’t really know, but I’m many seasons. I can remember at least three Greenleaves like this one.”

“It’s actually about to be Leaffall. Such an inexperienced cat shouldn’t become a queen, especially since she hasn’t had any litters before. Leave him to me.”

“Since when did this conversation become about my relationship with our leader?! You’re awful and I hope you get exiled one day too.” Rainwish’s face was red with both embarrassment and fury. “And I hope you never have any more kits with anyone ever. They would deserve much, much better.”

“If you end up mating with that tom who is twice your size, I pray to whatever spirits he mentioned…” Ravenwing stuck her muzzle in her face. “I pray he doesn’t get the chance to even realize you’re pregnant before you too are exiled. I hate that you’re talking back to me and are actually GOOD at it, you little sh-.”

“Hey!” Mapleshine was padding towards them. “Rainwish, Pinestar wants you to eat with us.” She glanced at Ravenwing, who had an eyebrow raised. “No, not you. He told me to tell you he was sorry for your loss and wishes to give you time to grieve alone.”

The sharp-eyed she-cat said nothing before turning around and disappearing into the warriors den. Mapleshine gave Rainwish a sympathetic look. “She’s a jerk, I ken. Pinestar is too nice to exile her.”

“I wish he would.”

“He isn’t the type of cat to do that simply because he doesn’t like someone, and ye ken that. Ravenwing hasnae physically clawed anyone. Yet.”

“I know. But I’m worried his bite might get infected or something.”

To her surprise, Mapleshine laughed. “He’s been through worse than that, believe me. He’ll be fine tomorrow, and you trust him to take care of himself.”

“I do. I-oh noooo.” Rainwish overdramatically fell over. “Help me. I’m having those kits Ravenwing absolutely does NOT want to exist ever.”

Mapleshine’s eyes widened before she burst into laughter. “I like you. Your humor and wit combined is too much,” she purred. Her brown and ivory pelt prickled with excitement. “Now come on. My brother needs you to cheer him up.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sad hours in streamclan :(


	10. Chapter 7

Rainwish arched her back in a stretch the next morning. She’d stayed with Pinestar the whole night, since she had dozed off mid-conversation. Pinestar was already up, and chatting with Leaftail at the front of the medicine den.

“Rainwish,” he meowed when she joined them. Leaftail gave her a small smile. “We need to talk.”

“What’s up? Are you feeling better?”

The big tom touched muzzles with her. “Leaftail had an omen a while back,” he began. “It featured a stream turning into a raging river because it began to rain and a raven stirred the water.”

“That’s very poetic. I like it.”

Leaftail snorted. “You’re hilarious and I hope it meant good, not bad. Starclan can be entirely too vague with their messages. As quickly as the storm started it ended by distant barking, and flames came out of nowhere and consumed everything. It was so chaotic and neither of us are exactly sure what to make of it.”

Rainwish shivered. “That’s unsettling. Maybe it was just a dream about weather?”

“A dream that vivid usually means something.” Pinestar was twitching his whiskers thoughtfully. “We think it means you and Ravenwing.”

“Really? Are we going to have a big fight? Because I’d glady tear her apart after what she’s left undone.”  _ I hate what Blazewing tried to do, but if her mother hadn’t been so awful to her…  _

“That’s my interpretation,” Leaftail meowed. “But our leader has a different idea.”

“I know you don’t like her, but hear me out.” Pinestar rested his tail on her shoulder. “You and Ravenwing will help the clan to thrive.”

“And hedgehogs will fly.”

His muzzle wrinkled in amusement. “You’re both skilled warriors, and both strong and determined. And Leaftail had another sign…”

The grey spotted medicine cat nodded. “A pine and maple were being pushed aside by stars. I think Starclan is calling Pinestar and Mapleshine elsewhere.”

“I-What? Why?” Rainwish glared at both of them, shaking her leader’s tail off her back. “Is this about Blazewing?”

“No. We’ve thought about this for a while.” Pinestar’s big ears were drooping. “But with Blazewing’s attempt at murdering me, we figured it was time. We wanted to talk about it with you last night but you fell asleep.”

“Why didn’t you wake me?”

“Because your snoring is cute. Leaftail, do you mind leaving us for a moment?”

“Sure.” She gave the blue-grey she-cat a friendly nod and left.

“Pinestar?”

“Rainwish, I have to apologize, but I can’t change the will of Starclan. They have wisdom beyond our understanding.”

“Are you sure about that? From what I’ve heard they’re just spirits of warriors who happen to stay in a clan after death. What wisdom could they have in death that they didn’t have in life?”

“I dinnae ken. But they’ve been right in the past, and they care as much as I do about ye. And these cats aren’t just Starclan; they are my Auroraclan Ancestors.” Pinestar lowered his head. “You’re… You’re not expecting, are you?”

“I-Kits? N-no, not that I know of,” she stammered, caught completely off-guard by the question. “Pinestar, we haven’t mated yet. If we had, would you stay?”

“I would take ye wit me either way, but Starclan wants you here. I don’t know why but I trust my Ancestors, and I’m sure you and Ravenwing will learn to get along. I’m appointing her as the cat to take my place.”

“I’m not sure.”  _ This is painful. Should I lie and tell him my stomach hurts? No, he knows me too well. _ “I don’t know if I could handle a Ravenstar regime. Where are you even going to go?”

“The Ancestors will guide my sister and I. Our pawsteps will follow the stars. I can’t argue with them. They probably wanted us to leave sooner; I see Blazewing as a sign of that.” 

Rainwish sighed. “I understand. You’d better visit, at least. You know how you feel, and I do, too.”

“I will,” he mewed softly, burying their muzzles in each other’s neck fur. The sunlight streamed onto them from one side and the darkness of the den stuck to them on the other. “I’ll see ye again soon.” 

Mapleshine was waiting for them on the fallen pine. “Hey, Rainwish.” She had an expression of sadness and her ears were drooping the same way as her brother’s. “Dinnae forget yer pure dead brilliant.” 

“Thanks. Don’t you dare forget you’ve been an absolutely amazing deputy and a great friend.” She embraced the brown and ivory tabby.

“Dinnae ye forget either,” Mapleshine purred. “You’ve such a wonderful cat. Thank you for being here.”

“I wish you could stay here too. I don’t know what it’s like to have kin but I understand the importance of yours to you.”

Pinestar was calling the clan together. Rainwish leapt down and sat a ways away to make room on the log for Leaftail.  
“Cats of Streamclan,” he meowed. “Leaftail has news from Starclan to deliver.”

The medicine cat cleared her throat. “Hallo. I have received multiple visions I believe will determine the future of our beloved clan,” she began. “They are about our leader and perhaps our future leaders.” She glanced around at each of the many warriors gazing up at her. “A stream turned into a raging river because of the rain and a raven stirred the chaotic water. Then, there was barking from an unknown creature or creatures, and fire came and everything disappeared in a flash.”

The warriors started muttering to each other. Ravenwing glanced at Rainwish, narrowing her yellow eyes. Rainwish’s ice-blue stared back calmly despite how unnerved she felt.

“I’m not finished yet,” Leaftail meowed. Pinestar and Mapleshine both shifted at the same time on the old tree. “A few days later I had another omen. A pine and maple were being pushed aside by stars and a caw of some kind of bird. It was also really cold.” 

The clan started talking again, sharing their own conspiracies. “Our interpretation,” Pinestar meowed, raising his voice. “is that Mapleshine and I are meant to leave Streamclan to let the rain and raven thrive.”

More murmuring. “With Blazewing’s exile, our guess is that it’s a third sign for us to go,” he finished. “Ravenwing, you have been chosen to take over. I wish you the best.”

Ravenwing’s fur straightened in surprise. “Me? Why, it would be an  _ absolute honor,” _ she purred, over-dramatically fluttering her eyelashes. “I will make Streamclan the most powerful clan to ever exist, and I will eliminate anything that dares to stand in the way. I thank you for this unexpected gift.”

_ I honestly don’t like you, _ Rainwish thought.  _ I've tried to get along with you, just as I would any other cat, but you honestly suck. Too bad I’ve never had an apprentice; if I did I could be appointed deputy right now and then leader. Oh well, I trust Pinestar. Maybe not at this exact moment but I trust him in most other situations. Maybe you’ll be better as a leader. _

“Rainwish,” he meowed. She jumped; she had been too busy thinking to realize he’d ended the meeting. “Beannachd leibh.”

“Farewell,” she replied, brushing pelts with him and inhaling each other’s scents. “If this doesn’t go well I’m going to have a talk with you and your ancestors.”

Pinestar closed his eyes.  _ He’s crying, _ she realized.  _ He’s been trying really hard not to this whole time. _ “Goodbye,” she murmured in his ear before gently pulling away.

The self-exiled leader slowly turned away from Rainwish and spoke to each of his clanmates individually. Mapleshine was doing the same. Ravenwing slid up the log and already looked like she was in charge.  _ I hope you’ll be a good one, _ Rainwish thought.  _ Even if we’ve never really been friends. I’ll do my best to get along with you. _

She glanced at the camp entrance, where Mapleshine’s tail was vanishing. Pinestar followed, though he stopped for a moment and turned his head in the blue-grey she-cat’s direction. 

“Tomorrow I will be getting my nine lives,” Ravenwing meowed once he had left. “Though I’ll wait for Starclan to make him give his own up. By moonhigh the new deputy will be announced.”

~~~~~

Rainwish paced the clearing that night, still sad about her mentor’s departure but anxious to know who Ravenwing would choose.  _ Surely Nightfang, _ she thought, glancing at the black tom with the light-grey, crescent-shaped patches. His dark blue eyes gleamed in support of his friend as he stepped out of the warriors den.  _ He may be new here, but he’s experienced. _

A hush fell over the clearing as Ravenwing finally emerged from the leader’s den.  _ I bet you’ve made it stink, _ Rainwish thought with a snort as she padded to the back of the crowd. 

“Good evening, Streamclan,” meowed their new leader. “I have carefully considered all of our eligible warriors for the honorable position of clan deputy.”  _ Get on with it, then. _

“Our new second-in-command,” she went on. The clan leaned forward as one in excitement. “will be our beloved Rainwish.”

“I-What? ME?”  _ WHAT. _ “But I haven’t even had an apprentice yet!”

“Yes, that’s true,” Ravenwing admitted. “But you’re by far the most loyal cat. And we can fix your lack of mentorship. Fireclaw, go wake up your kits.”

“Icefur will tear up my pelt,” the dark ginger tom complained. Sharp yellow eyes gave him a stern look. “Fine, fine.”

The queen was cursing as her mate nudged her kits from the nursery.  _ Hailkit and Palekit are only five moons old, not six, _ Rainwish thought.  _ You’re taking away their last days of kithood. _

“Rainwish and Nightfang, come forward.” They both did. “Hailkit.” The grey and white tom rolled forward, his black ears fluffed with excitement as he blinked at her sleepily. “From this day on, until you have received your warrior name, you will be known as Hailpaw. Your mentor will be Nightfang. He will do his best to pass down all he has learned to you.”

The young tom leaned forward and touched muzzles with the warrior. “Palekit,” Ravenwing meowed. The white, grey, and pale ginger she-kit looked up.“From this day on, until you have received your warrior name, you will be Palepaw. Rainwish will be your mentor, and will do her best to teach you all she knows.”

The two she-cats touched noses. “Hi,” Rainwish smiled. “It’s nice to meet you.”

“I’ll do my best!” Palepaw squeaked. “You’ve always been so cool.”

“Aw. I’m equal to any other cat here,” she laughed. “And I’m sure you will. I’ll do my best for you, too.”

The clan cheered into the night for the new apprentices. “Hailpaw! Palepaw! Hailpaw! Palepaw!” Nightfang and Rainwish gave each other a nod of mutual respect. 

Ravenwing watched with approval. “Rainwish, come forward once more.”

She did so. “I say these words before StarClan, so that the spirits of our warrior ancestors may hear and approve of my choice. The new deputy of Streamclan is Rainwish.” The black-and-white she-cat beckoned with her tail for Rainwish to sit next to her. “I don’t hate you, you know,” she meowed, speaking in the other she-cat’s ear to help her hear past the cheering. “But I don’t like you either.”

“I know. But you’re tolerable, I suppose. I’m forever going to think of myself as an odd choice for being your second-in-command.”

Ravenwing twitched her whiskers, amused. “You’re a determined cat. You’re exactly what Streamclan needs. This isn’t about me, not one bit.”  _ Yeah, right. Have you thought about that kit of yours once today? _

She looked up at the visible sliver of moon, and Rainwish followed suit. “Still,” she muttered. “I wonder what the dead can say to convince the two most important cats in the clan to leave.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> long chapter wooooooooooo
> 
> “Beannachd leibh” - “farewell” or “blessings be with you” in Scottish Gaelic :)  
> Source: https://www.theclassroom.com/traditional-gaelic-farewells-12084454.html


	11. Chapter 8

Rainwish slept uneasily, glad to be accepted by the clan as deputy but nervous that she would mess up on day one. She went over the names of each cat in her head. _Hey, I haven’t seen Dragonheart since right after Pinestar left. Did he leave too? That makes sense; they’re kin as well._ She rolled over on her back and stared at the leafy canopy above. _I’ll do my best in your place, Mapleshine._

At daybreak the camp was slowly rising to their paws. Rainwish did her best to organize patrols the same way the previous deputy had. Ravenwing came into camp around midday with Leaftail at her side, who seemed as if she were trying to hide the fact that she was somewhat unnerved by something. _I hope that doesn’t mean bad omen number four._

“Hey,” she meowed as she padded up to them. “Did you get your nine lives?”

“Yes,” Ravenstar purred. “And I already have great ideas.”

Leaftail’s brown tail was flattening the grass behind them. “I don’t see why we need to move camp,” she sighed. “There’s no risk of flooding here; if it did flood, the water wouldn’t be very high. We’re far enough from the main river-”

“You don’t know that. You haven’t been here long enough to know,” Ravenstar argued. “I think moving upstream would be a great improvement.” She looked at her deputy. “What do you think?”

“Well, there’s both ups and downs to it… I really don’t see it greatly affecting our future either way. We will still be the same clan. It’s up to you, Ravenstar. If you want to go ahead with it, then do so.” _I would miss this place._

Leaftail’s ears perked in surprise. “I thought you two didn’t like each other.” She gave Rainwish a confused glance. “Well, fine. I guess it’s better you both get along anyway.” The medicine cat turned and disappeared into her den.

“What’s up with her?” the blue-grey she-cat wondered. “Did everything okay on the trip to and from?”

Ravenstar shrugged. “Nothing seemed out of the ordinary to me, except you know, you’ll have to kill me nine times for me to really be gone.” She nudged Rainwish’s side. “I must be such a pest to you.”

Rainwish avoided her tender tail. “Eh. I’m sure I’ll meet worse throughout my lifetime.”

“I hope so. Because you’re never getting rid of me. What are you thinking about?” She leaned forward and her yellow eyes pierced ice-blue. “Not about the leader before me, hmm?”

“I’m sure you’ve thought about him too, stupid little furball. Stop,” she sighed as Ravenstar started sniffing her pelt for traces of him. “Why don’t you start thinking about that kit you abandoned before we move on?”

“Blazewing was never meant to be a warrior,” she hissed. “I should’ve never had a kit with that dumb rogue. Her father should’ve been a clan cat; then perhaps she would’ve been bearable to look at.”

 _She’s… literally your spitting image? You must have some awful self-esteem._ “Is that why you don’t like me? Because of where I come from? Do you realize no cat can help that, and at the end of the day it doesn’t matter, because you ultimately choose where your loyalty ends up going to. There are clan cats who have left behind this clan every now and then because of various reasons, including our le-”

“WHY CAN YOU NEVER STOP TALKING ABOUT HIM. MOVE ON ALREADY,” Ravenstar stomped. “Your loyalty should be to ME now. Forget him. You’d be doing yourself a favor.” 

With a swish of her long tail she turned away. “Rogues and loners shouldn’t taint precious clan blood.”

Rainwish glanced at Leaftail watching her from afar with a forlorn expression. _I’m sorry. Pinestar chose her, not me. I have to do my best to get along with her. And I don’t think I would be that good of a leader anyway._

~~~~~

_Phew! That should be the last reed for the nursery._ Rainwish climbed down from the roof of the new den and shook the scraps of leaves and twigs off her blue-grey pelt. Palepaw stood next to her mentor, having plenty of extra materials. “Make sure the cats working on the other dens have enough,” she ordered. The small she-cat nodded and scurried away.

The deputy glanced around at the new camp. “I need some cats for a hunting patrol. You all deserve fresh prey after all the hard work that’s been done today,” she meowed. “I can’t believe how we managed to do so much in the span of a few days. I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished.”

Rainwish chose a few other cats for her hunting party. They left their new home in high spirits and mud. The upper part of their territory was more swampy, and every now and then Rainwish would step on a mushroom. _I can’t get over the stupid noises they sometimes make when squished. Maybe moving wasn’t such an unnecessary idea after all. Whatever keeps Ravenstar happy, like these cute little mushrooms._

The group split up after a while. Rainwish figured some fish would be swimming around the river at that hour, so she made her way to it.

A familiar scent tingled her muzzle when the trout she was about to catch was spooked by a shadow behind her. “Go away,” she huffed, tackling her former leader to the ground. He tried to stand back up but Rainwish refused to let him go, and for a good minute they wrestled like kits in the mud. “This isn’t your territory anymore, Pine-Pinewhat?”

“Aquafrost. My name is Aquafrost again.”

“That name is too pretty for someone who never washes their pelt.” Rainwish couldn’t help but purr despite the fact he had won their little play fight and was now sitting on her. “I’ve missed you. Where have you been and what have you been doing?”

“Well… I’ve been wandering around the outskirts of the land. Dragonheart joined Mapleshine and I recently; ye must’ve noticed his absence.” She nodded. “We’ve been trying to look for more signs from Starclan, but so far, they’ve been quiet.”

“Why are you bothering me then? You should still be searching,” Rainwish mewed, trying to shove him off of her. It didn’t work. _This cursed mud!_ “You big oaf! I have to hunt for Streamclan!”

Aquafrost peered in her direction, clearly wanting to not budge. But he got up and allowed her to jump in the river and clean off. “One of these days, I swear I’m going to make you take the biggest bath any cat has ever seen!”

Rainwish swam in circles as he leapt in the water as well. Vines grew down to encompass the two. “How is Ravenstar? I haven’t had a chance to see her leadership yet.”

“She’s… fine. Having more mushrooms around camp makes her happier, I suppose. You’ll never guess who she chose as deputy though; quite an odd choice if you ask me.”

“Who?” 

“Me,” she snorted, giving him a gentle splash with her paw. “Me, out of all her _loyal_ followers. Why don’t you seem more surprised?”

“Because yer the most loyal warrior out there. Not to her, but to Streamclan as a whole. Who became your apprentice?”

“Sweet little Palekit. Nightfang got her brother. They’re both doing very well, and we’re both proud of them,” she purred. The vines shook a little in the wind. “I miss your mentoring, you know. I had a lot of fun even though I was a boring adult and not a happy-go-lucky kit the whole time.”

The tom had a faraway look in his cloudy eyes. Some minnows swam around their paws. “It’s not just about fun,” he muttered after a moment. “Remember you have to teach her the serious things, too.”

“Of course I will. But I still miss you.” Rainwish embraced him, burying her muzzle in his neck fur. He did the same, and he relaxed because of her touch. “Streamclan has been so different without you.”

“If Starclan is willing, they’ll give one of us an omen for you to come with me. I’m scared,” he admitted, pulling away from her slowly. “I don’t want you getting hurt because you chose me.”

Rainwish splashed him again, this time with force. “I’m going to be hurt anyway; it’s part of any warrior’s life. I’d rather love as much as I can before it’s too late.” She thrust her muzzle against his. “Do you think I can’t handle this? Is this a CHALLENGE?”

Aquafrost’s tone was serious yet kind. “I know you can. But now isn’t the time. You have the deputyship of Streamclan and I have the mission of Starclan.” He returned the touch. “Come get me if you need me. I’ll be around.”

Rainwish sighed, the fish swirling around them. “I understand. But don’t think I’m not going to worry my fur off because of you, stinky.”

“I worry about you too. Why else do you think I’m here?” Aquafrost led the way out of the water. “I dinnae like our separation as much as you do. But I can promise you…” Rainwish stepped out of the waves to face him. “I will always return.” 

With that, he disappeared into the ferns.

~~~~~

He did in fact return. The very next day Aquafrost strolled into camp as if he were still Pinestar. Rainwish was digging through the remaining scraps of the prey pile that morning with Greytail and Icefur when she suddenly sensed his presence.

“What?” she meowed as he flickered her ears with his tail. “You aren’t in charge anymore.”

“I need to speak with Ravenstar,” he mewed. “I scented Blazestar near our border this morning.”

“Don’t call her that. She’s never led anyone,” the she-cat huffed. Greytail was hurrying away to wake up Ravenstar, and a moment later the clan leader emerged from her den.

Her yellow eyes widened in surprise as he padded up to her and explained the situation. Rainwish hung back while Icefur dug her claws into the ground.

“I don’t want my kits to be hurt because of that rogue. You keep a close eye on Palepaw, okay?” the white she-cat asked.

“Of course.” Rainwish nodded to Icefur’s mate Fireclaw as he joined them. “Have you seen her around after her exile?”

“Occasionally I smell her near the edges of our territory. She hasn’t crossed over so I never reported it.” The ginger tom shrugged. “Whenever I chase a rabbit or squirrel over the border on accident, Icefur and I nearly encounter her occasionally. She’s weird, just sitting alone out there, so close to us. It’s like she’s plotting something.”

_ I bet she still wants attention from her mother. _ Rainwish glanced at Ravenstar and Aquafrost talking.  _ Won’t you take responsibility for your only kit? _

“Your daughter chose her own path, even if she may possess your blood,” the great tom was saying when the deputy joined them. “My family was always peace-loving, but did that stop Darkstar?”

_ Darkstar. The name of his brother, a tom who is said to be absolutely ruthless. I hope I never meet him. _ Rainwish rested her tail on Aquafrost’s back as he shivered at his own words. Ravenstar’s eyes narrowed.

“I don’t really think we should do anything besides chase her away if she comes too close again,” Rainwish suggested. “If she becomes a real threat, we deal with her. If not, we spend our time on things that actually matter.”

She’d assumed Ravenstar would snap at her, but instead she was nodding along. “I’ll send out a patrol later to make sure she’s far away by now. If she’s not, then…” The black-and-white she-cat unleashed her claws. “We tear her apart.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> over 10k words now woooooo!


	12. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Posting this chapter as well as the next from my phone instead of my computer so hopefully it didn’t get messed up when copying and pasting oof

Blazewing had been found later at the border, looking almost as if she had been waiting for them. Her fur looked as if she hadn’t groomed herself in moons. Rainwish had politely asked her to leave, and much to her surprise she did, though she had a scheming gleam in her eyes.

The morning sunlight did its very best to sneak through the leaves and the tops of the giant mushrooms above Streamclan’s second camp. Rainwish was leading a border patrol the day after, consisting of her apprentice Palepaw, Hailpaw and his mentor Nightfang. “Hailpaw will be a tough one,” she commented as they padded alongside each other. The younger cats were meowing behind them. “I saw how good he was at practice fighting yesterday.”

The other warrior nodded proudly. “A good boy is he. Palepaw has some brilliant hunting skills. That hawk she caught the other day is one of the largest I’ve ever set eyes on!”

“They’re both so wonderful,” Rainwish purred. “Who was your mentor, if you don’t mind me asking.”

“My mentor? Hpmh, it’s been a long time since I’ve thought about him. He was… okay, I guess. Our time training together was over countless seasons ago.” Nightfang twitched his graying whiskers. “He wasn’t the greatest cat but I do miss him.”

“I understand. I miss mine as well.”

“Really? I never guessed,” Nightfang snorted. “You’d better not say that in front of Ravenstar.”

“Oh, we’ve always disliked each other from the very start. Don’t worry about it too much.”

“You shouldn’t worry either. She’ll be eager to finish you off eventually.” The tom beckoned to the apprentices with his tail. “Let’s-”

A screech from afar startled all of them. “Sounds like rogues. We’d better leave them be since they don’t sound close enough to be in our territory,” Nightfang meowed. “Let’s do our job and move on.”

“What?! Just because they’re strangers doesn’t mean they might not need our help,” Rainwish snapped. Palepaw and Hailpaw glanced at each other uneasily. “I’m going to go see what’s going on.”

“Suit yourself. Apprentices, let’s finish our patrol.” Nightfang narrowed his blue eyes at the deputy. Rainwish glared right back, lashing her tail. “Let’s do what we’re supposed to.”

The two cats followed the older warrior silently. The blue-grey she-cat growled before turning her back and racing away. _How could you be so heartless?!_

The swampier parts of the land flew under her paws. Rainwish opened her jaws to detect the intruders quicker.

Several fox-lengths away were three cats. A black and dark grey tom was nudging two kits forward. He was limping and bleeding from various scratches. Rainwish rushed forward to assist, relieved that Blazewing was true to her word and wasn’t still around.

“Who are you?” hissed one of the kits. This one was black with brown stripes and piercing green eyes. “What do you want?”

“What do you think I want?!” Rainwish hissed back. _She can’t be more than three moons old. What an aggressive little thing._ “How can I help?”

“Just find us a place to rest,” gasped the tom. His dark blue eyes were drooping from his exhaustion and wounds. “Please. We’ve been running since before daybreak.”

“I know a place,” Rainwish replied. She took the angry kit and carried her despite her hissy fit. The tom picked up the other one, a light grey kit with some black splotches. _They must be a family._ “Come on.”

Knowing they wouldn’t last long and certainly wouldn’t be welcome in Ravenstar’s camp, the deputy took them to a small clearing where the marsh was transforming into forest. “Rest here. I’ll make you a nest.”

“Thank you,” the tom meowed as the blue-grey she-cat padded to where some moss was growing on a rock. _This should do._ “What’s your name?”

“Rainwish. You?”

“I’m Stone. These are my baby sisters, Tiger and Shadow.” Tiger bared her teeth again as Rainwish dropped the moss and checked for thorns. “Shadow, it’s okay now. Say hello to our savior.”

The kit who hadn’t spoken yet peered up at Rainwish with big blue eyes. “H-Hi.”

“Hi,” mewed Rainwish. “It’s nice to meet you, too.”

“Tiger, now it’s your turn to be nice. I know you’re not good at it, but please try.”

“Hello.” This time the striped she-kit was much quieter. “I don’t like you very much, but thanks for saving us I guess. Not that we couldn’t have saved ourselves.”

Her brother sighed and shook his head. “She’s awful, for a three moon-year-old kit. But it looks like she’s in my custody for quite some time now.” Stone glanced at his scratches and growled. “Mama Sunny told us to run when the foxes came, but I had to get in a few bites, at least. One day I’ll kill those beasts for what I sense they’ve done to my kin.”

“I’m sorry,” Rainwish muttered. “One of my clanmates died from a fox attack a while back. They’re awful pests. Do you need help with those wounds?”

“I’ll clean up in a moment. Let me speak. I don’t think they were just ANY foxes. I think they hated us. I don’t know why. Maybe they just like to eat cats.” He collapsed into the new nest. The she-kits joined him and buried themselves in his fur. “Thanks. I proclaim you as one of us now.”

“What an honor for me,” Rainwish meowed. “I have a clan, though.”

“I know. You have one of those warrior names like my mother’s mother and father did when they were young. They never said why they left, but I think their names were Owlgaze and Mistlepoppy. They went by just Owl and Mistle when they had my mother and her sisters.” He shivered. “I hope they survived.”

“Why are you telling this stranger everything?” Tiger demanded. “This isn’t what I was taught!”

“You spent too much time around our clan relatives,” Stone laughed. “You’re acting unnecessarily rude, just like them.” He turned back to Rainwish. “Thanks for being nice to us. Your breed is stereotypically not like that at all.”

She shrugged. “Others may disagree, but I don’t care. I want to help anyone and everyone in some way if we cross paths. It’s what my mentor taught me, anyway. I’m so sorry about your kin.” 

“He must be a good cat, then. It’s okay; grief hasn’t fully set in yet. Give me a moment.” Stone paused and bit his lip. “Do you have any herb knowledge like Mistle did? She said she was a medicine cat.”

“No, but I know someone who is. I can get you herbs by tomorrow; Streamclan will be wondering where their deputy went off to. I see you’re not injured enough to be in serious pain.”

He nodded. “You’d better get back to your group, then. We’ll be here waiting. Right, Tiger?”

Tiger hissed and buried her face in the moss, away from her siblings. Shadow crawled out of the nest and hesitantly approached Rainwish. The blue-grey she-cat leaned down to boop her nose affectionately.

Rainwish left her new friends with a wave of her tail, happier than she’d been in a while. _Good to not worry about the clan for a moment. I hope their kin is okay; the name Mistlepoppy is giving me chills._

“Rainwish!” Her ears perked as her apprentice came crashing through the bushes. “There you are!”

“What’s happening?! Am I in trouble?”

“Nope! I ditched Nightfang! Hailpaw wanted to as well, but he didn’t want to get yelled at. I said I’d come to you, but I wasn’t sure if I should be outside the territory alone. I caught a raven!” Palepaw was beaming with pride as she placed the enormous bird at her paws.

“Wow,” Rainwish gasped. “I didn’t even realize real ravens lived in our territory…”

“I want you to have it!” the white, grey, and ginger she-cat exclaimed. “Show Ravenstar you’re not meant to be pushed around!”

“I-Really?” The deputy peered down at the messy feathers. “Well…”

“Come on, you’ve got to. You can’t let yourself be treated like this.”

“But I need to get along with her, for Streamclan’s sake. There can’t be a division between the deputy and the leader; the clan will fall apart!” Rainwish covered her face with her paws. “I’m so tired of her; she’s obnoxious and always watching every move I make. I can’t continue on like this.”

“Then do something! Starting with this stupid bird,” Palepaw insisted, shoving the raven in her mentor’s face. Her green-blue eyes were wide. “Come on!”

“Fine, fine. Let’s hope I don’t get attacked for this,” Rainwish sighed, wishing there was a more passive way to settle the matter. “Let’s get going.”

Ravenstar was standing in the center of camp when they arrived. “There you are. I-” She spotted the prey in Rainwish’s jaws. “That isn’t funny.”

“You aren’t funny,” Rainwish shot back. “Come on, Palepaw. Let’s go over the Warrior Code as we feast.”

As they settled down near the apprentices’ den to eat, Rainwish couldn’t help but feel as though she were being tracked under her leader’s yellow glare. 

~~~~~

The next morning, after sending out the patrols of the day, Rainwish went to see Leaftail. “Hi,” she meowed as she stuck her head into the medicine den. “May I borrow-Leaftail?”

Rainwish padded in and saw that the clan’s only medicine cat was nowhere to be found. _She hasn’t been here since last night,_ she thought with a frown. _She’s always here in the mornings; usually she sleeps in and goes out for herbs around sunhigh. Is everything alright?_

_I shouldn’t worry about it too much,_ Rainwish decided. _Maybe she felt like getting up early today. Very, very early. Maybe a sudden Moonpool mission? Hmm…_

Rainwish chose the herbs she knew well enough that could cure injuries and prevent infections. _Marigold, that helps with infection. Cobwebs for any bleeding, though I doubt Stone would still be in physical pain now. Oh well, just in case._

Ravenstar was still in her den, presumably asleep, when Rainwish left the camp. It was a beautiful morning, though she couldn’t help but sense the sadness of the loners from afar.

“You’re back!” Stone had moved the nest under a sheltered bush. His eyes had circles under them; he clearly hadn’t slept well. His sisters were dozing by his side. “Hurry, before Tiger wakes up and is a furball.”

Rainwish did her best to copy what Leaftail would do. “Thanks,” he purred when she had smeared the marigold all over his scratches. “What’s that on your neck?”

“My… fur?”

“No, the marking on the back of your neck.” Rainwish starting turning in circles, attempting to see it. “Your grey spot.”

“What about it? It’s just a patch of fur I’ve always had.”

“I have the same one. Everyone descended from my mother’s mother does,” he explained, showing her his own. “We must be kin!”

“I doubt that. If we are, we aren’t closely related.” _It would be nice to have blood family, but I don’t know if they would really be any good in the end, considering some of the relationships I’ve witnessed._

“No. Mama Sunny had two sisters, Willow and, well, we don’t know. She got taken away by a storm when she was very small; we thought she died. But you must be her!”

Rainwish gave him a skeptical frown. “How a random kit could survive a flood and not remember, is absolutely beyond me, because I can’t recall anything beyond being alone during my kithood. I joined my clan when I was a full grown cat with nothing else but a few basic skills.” She tapped her paw against the dirt. “I’m trying to remember more, but my mind is blank. Huh, I never realized how… empty… my early days were.”

“But you’re happy in your clan now. That’s all that matters, right?”

“Well… I was happy when another cat was leading, but then he had to leave because Starclan told him too. Now there’s another cat in charge that I don’t get along with. It’s been tough lately, but I’ll be alright. Don’t worry about me.”

“I won’t,” Tiger muttered, turning over to face them. “Ew, you made Stone stink with flowers.”

“They are there so his wounds don’t get infected. I’m just trying to help, geez. Why are you such a rude tiny baby?”

“Why do you care?” she snapped. “We just lost our entire family, and you’re complaining about a strained relationship with a living cat! Get OUT! Clan cats are the WORST!”

“I’m sorry about her,” Stone meowed. “She listened to waaaay too many of our mother’s parents’ stories on why every clan cat to exist is automatically awful. Oh, and also Owl’s and Mistle’s killing sprees. They were our beloved kin but also kind of, you know, out of it.”

Rainwish winced. “Grey spot or no grey spot, I’m not kin to either of them. No thanks.”

“Stop being so pessimistic,” Shadow muttered, flicking her fluffy tail over her sister’s muzzle. “Cheer up. Let’s think about flowers.”

Tiger hissed, standing up and padding to the other side of the clearing. She dragged some of the moss with her and curled up on top of it. “Flowers are GROSS. NO WAY. I MUST FULLY GRIEVE NOW. THEY ARE ALL DEAD TO ME. GOODBYE.”

“How about you thank Rainwish one more time?” Stone suggested. “We might not see her again for a while because of her clan duties.”

“Yeah, thank you!” Shadow was fully awake now, blue eyes as big as the moon above. “You saved us!”

“We would’ve saved ourselves,” Tiger snapped, and for a brief moment Rainwish saw her fangs. _They’re long and sharp, for a kit’s!_ “Better to be alone and not attract unwanted attention.”

“I’m sorry. I just couldn’t deny a cat in need,” she shot back. “I may be a clan cat, but I chose my battles wisely. And your kin might still be alive. They could’ve ran in the other direction, you know.”

“We can find that out ourselves. GET OUT.”

“You know what? Fine. You suck,” the blue-grey she-cat huffed. “Farewell to your awful face.”

“Thanks again for helping us,” Stone meowed as Rainwish turned to go. “You’re welcome to visit. You may not ever acknowledge it but you’re kin to me. I don’t think we’ll be going anywhere for some time now.”

“Anytime,” Rainwish purred. “I’ll be across the stream if you need anything. Be careful near the border; I don’t trust Ravenstar one bit.”

“We will. Shadow and I, at least.”


	13. Chapter 10

Rainwish brushed past the ferns guarding the camp entrance to discover the clan’s overwhelming anxiety scent. “What’s going on?”

Ravenstar was in the center of every cat, waving her tail for silence. “Leaftail has disappeared. She hasn’t been home for a whole day.”

“I’ll lead the search patrol,” the deputy offered. “We’ll track her scent.”

Ravenstar gave her a nod, a distant look in her eyes. “You do that. We can’t lose our only medicine cat.”

~~~~~

It had taken more than the remaining half of the day to finally catch up to Leaftail, who was pacing near a hidden pond dappled with countless stars. Rainwish found her first, with the rest of the patrol several fox-lengths behind. _This must be a place where Starclan can communicate with us._

The white medicine cat slowly turned around to face Rainwish with a wild look in her green eyes. The grey spots dappled all over her fur were almost like eyes that stared into her soul. “There was another prophecy,” she breathed. “About you and Ravenstar again.”

Leaftail took a single pawstep forward. “Rain’s wish and the raven’s wing,” she whispered. “will either save or destroy the stream.”

“What?” Rainwish lashed her tail. “NOW the stars are trying to be clear?”

“I leave with a farewell as well as a warning,” Leaftail meowed, her brown tail fluffed. Rainwish suddenly noticed a few scratches on her back. _Who gave her those? They look fresh!_ “You mustn’t let the current wash itself away.”

With that, she leaped across the water and disappeared into the unknown.

~~~~~

“What do you mean, Leaftail is gone?!” Ravenstar snarled when Rainwish explained what had happened. She leaped to her paws and dug her claws into the soil of her den. “You were supposed to bring her back here!”

“She chose to leave,” Rainwish replied, slowly backing away from the angry warrior. _Probably because of those scratches. The main suspect is right in front of me…_

“She had no apprentice!” Ravenstar thrust her muzzle up against the blue-grey she-cat’s. “And you let her just walk out?!”

“I couldn’t force her to stay if she didn’t want to be here. I-”

“You brought three other warriors with you! Of course you could have forced her to stay!” Ravenstar paced around the deputy in a circle, kicking up dirt. “Now what? We have no medicine cat!”

“Then we’ll recruit a new one. I’ll lead the search.”

“No. I’LL lead the search.” The black-and-white warrior drew a few lines in the dust. “I’ll go past where Pinestar found you. There’s got to be more cats without clans in that area, whether you remember them or not.”

Rainwish nodded, trying to keep her calm. “Ok. I’ll stay here and guard the camp.”

“Yes. You do that.” Ravenstar regained her usual composure and fixed her yellow gaze on the other feline. “It’ll probably take a bit, but if I’m not back in a moon, you have the right to take my place as leader and assume I’m dead.”

Rainwish blinked in surprise. “Really?” _You have nine lives to spare…_ She felt a chill go down her spine.

“You’re my deputy. It’s your duty, and you’re a capable cat,” the leader meowed, her tone sharp. “As long as cats don’t randomly start deciding to say goodbye to Streamclan, that is.”

Ravenstar brushed past Rainwish on the way out of her den. “Let’s tell every cat the news, shall we?”

~~~~~

Palepaw was bouncing around with excitement the next morning, her light ginger patches blending well with the clouds above. “Hailpaw’s going to learn some new battle moves with Nightfang today. Can we do so as well? Pleeease?”

“Of course we can,” Rainwish purred, relieved that at least one cat wasn’t overly upset about Leaftail’s departure. She knew it was awful to lose a medicine cat, but Leaftail had had a path guided by Starclan to take elsewhere, wherever it might be. _She was here for quite a few seasons. I wonder what Pine–no, Aquafrost now–is up to these days. Has he found what he’s been called to?_

Rainwish took the lead, her pawsteps muffed by the squishing of wet grass, determined to focus on the task at hand. 

~~~~~

As the sun began to set over the marsh, Rainwish’s group padded into camp. Palepaw and Hailpaw were exhausted but in high spirits. Nightfang brought up the rear with a pensive expression.

Ravenstar was in her usual spot in the center of the world, waiting. She gave Rainwish a significant glance before disappearing into the undergrowth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy 2021!


	14. Chapter 11

Over the course of the moon, Rainwish kept the clan and herself busy with patrols.  _ I don’t want to declare Ravenstar dead. We may not like each other, but I don’t hate her enough to want her completely gone! She’s a good cat behind her obvious dislike of me; she’s led our clan so well from the start. And she’s smart enough to avoid any animal’s jaws. I respect her. _

_ I’m sure we can find another medicine cat, _ the deputy thought as she glanced towards the empty medicine den.  _ There’s got to be cats with lots of herb knowledge traveling around, looking for a new home. And it isn’t urgent-we aren’t in any immediate danger. Many cats like me know the basics of healing. Still, I hope we’re prepared for that soon.  _

Rainwish left the camp that evening to take a walk. She was about to turn around to head back to camp when she heard another cat lapping the water nearby.

“Rainwish!” Small Shadow was just across the stream, waving her tail. “You won’t believe this!”

“What? Why are you so far away from your brother?”

“He was showing Tiger and I some hunting moves earlier,” the grey and black she-cat grinned. “He mentioned he might join Streamclan!”

“Really? I would happily welcome all three of you,” purred Rainwish. “Are you and Tiger as well?”

“I want to so badly! But Stone says no; he needs to make sure Streamclan is safe first. But if you’re there then I’m sure it’s awesome, because you’re awesome! Tiger I’m not too sure.”

“Well, if he wants to come, I hope he does soon. I’d better get back to camp; it was nice seeing you.” The blue-grey she-cat swam across the river to give the younger cat’s ears a lick. “I’ll see you soon.”

Shadow nodded seriously. “It’s the last thing I do before those foxes come back and eat me.”

~~~~~

The next day, Rainwish knew she had to make the announcement that Ravenstar was presumed dead. When she did the clan wasn’t thrilled, but she made her way alone to the small Moonpool she’d discovered Leaftail at earlier. To her surprise, the medicine cat was still there, waiting for her.

“There isn’t anything for ye here,” she muttered when Rainwish stepped into the clearing. The moon shone over them. “Ravenstar is still leader.”

“Then why did she leave for so long, searching for you? Surely she’d know to check here, after following our scent.”

“Oh, I’m sure she does. But we’ve completed our business.” The spotted she-cat gazed at her friend with a slow sigh. “She has refused to give up her nine lives, I’m sure of it. She wants you dead and out of her way; this must have been what all those signs truly meant. My advice for you is to run and never glance back.”

“Run? From the cats I’m supposed to care for? No way,” Rainwish huffed. “Some of them may not like me, but I belong with them. It’s my duty to take care of them.”

“That ‘some’ is slowly becoming the majority of the clan, Rainwish. Yer extraordinary special and I dinnae want you to die anytime soon.” Her brown, leafy tail flickered a maple leaf towards her. “Ye need to have more time to chose yer fate.”

“I get that I’m not old and wise like you yet, thanks. May I ask who attacked you earlier?”

Leaftail chuckled sadly and turned to show the new scars on her back, particularly her shoulder blades. “I’m lucky I have some warrior training, or Ravenstar would’ve probably killed me. I know too much.”

“I suspected it was her,” murmured Rainwish, resting her own tail on the wounds. “I’m so sorry. You out of all cats don’t deserve this. You’ve always worked so hard for our clan.”

Leaftail closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them again. They were the same pale green as ever. “Ye must be wary, little warrior,” the medicine cat whispered. “Rain and the raven’s wing were meant to work together… is what I truly hoped all the omens pointed to. But that is only one direction fate can go.”

Rainwish shivered. “And where is it going?”

“Wherever it is guided to, and whoever leads it,” Leaftail said simply, yet ominously. “I was not meant to stay in Streamclan forever, and our former leader wasn’t either. But you still have hours. Trend them wisely, and choose your fate.” She got up from the edge of the pool and turned to leave. 

The white and grey she-cat paused to glance one more time at Rainwish. “There will be many who desire to thwart yer pawsteps. Time and time again you will be challenged. But stick to hope. The true end is when you chose to be forever defeated. Take on your new name and duty and continue the journey forward. Ye may not sense it now, but you will be remembered for many, many seasons when the hour finally arrives.”


	15. Chapter 12

Rainwish decided to spend the night at the pool to make it seem like she'd gotten her nine lives. When she was approaching her territory she found Stone there, waiting for her.

“I want to join Streamclan,” he announced. “Not my sisters, just me. They’ll be in their usual spot and I’ll check on them every day until I decide it’s safe here.” 

She nodded. “That’s a good plan.”

“Really?” His blue eyes were wide when Rainwish had finished her odd path to sudden leadership. “Don’t worry. I won’t tell a soul about your lack of nine lives. I hope the clan welcomes you as the one in charge; you’re a good cat.”

“Thanks. Let’s make our way over there.” Rainstar led the way through the trees, and Stone followed, enthusiasm bushing his fur.  _ I remember when I was just as excited to join a clan, _ she reminisced. 

The cats turned to the new leader and the clan’s newest member. “Streamclan,” the blue-grey she-cat meowed, calling a meeting as she stood where Ravenstar used to. “Since Ravenstar has been absent for over a moon, Starclan has given me my nine lives and have given me permission to take her place.”  _ I hope my voice isn’t shaking. _ “I also found a cat on our border when I arrived home, who wishes to spend the rest of his life serving our beloved clan.” 

The warriors called out her new name; Rainstar could see some of the hesitance and concern on their faces.  _ I won’t abandon you like our previous leaders. _

The clan, to her relief, accepted Stone as their newest warrior. Rainstar extended his name to Stonefur, knowing he had plenty of skill from his relatives that would serve him well throughout his time as a clan cat.  _ I hope his kin are okay. _

“I have one more thing to do today,” Rainstar meowed. “Two more, actually, but the deputy will be decided tonight.”

Her and Nightfang’s apprentices received their full names of Palespot and Hailstorm. “I’m so proud of you both.”

~~~~~

_ Not too bad for my first day as leader, _ Rainstar thought as the sun began to set.  _ Still… is he really the right choice for second-in-command? _

The new leader had gotten pressure all day from various warriors to make Nightfang the new deputy.  _ We’re not friends, but we’re not enemies either, and he’s well liked by most cats. And he’s always been dependable and a good mentor, even if he comes off as rude sometimes, especially to outsiders. _ She glanced around the camp. Stonefur was meowing to Hailstorm and Palespot.  _ They will all sit vigil guarding the camp tonight; I’m relieved he’s fitting in. It’s time to announce the new deputy. _

“I say these words before Starclan, so that the spirits of our warrior ancestors may hear and approve of my choice. The new deputy of Streamclan is Nightfang,” Rainstar meowed.

Streamclan cheered for him, and Rainstar hoped she made the right choice. Nightfang came up to her and dipped his head, meowing his thanks and acceptance of the role with a glimmer in his dark eyes. 


	16. Chapter 13

Rainstar spent the next few days doing her best for the clan, but Nightfang hadn’t been communicating well. He’d been off during the day to Starclan-knows-where, leaving her to organize the many patrols herself. And it didn’t help that through some of the recruiting going on, which she had been in charge of, they’d only found warriors desperately needing to be organized and not a single medicine cat among them.  _ And then there are the warriors who have been here a while who just straight up leave without a word! Why?! _

_ I really need him to pitch in, like he always did as a normal warrior, but I talked to him earlier, asking various questions, and he wouldn’t listen or answer me. Cats are beginning to think I’m weak, _ she sighed, rolling over in her lonely nest.  _ I’ve heard rumors that some believe Ravenstar is still in power. Maybe that’s why he isn’t listening to me, along with some other warriors…  _

Later that day she was out patrolling the border with Hailstorm and Stonefur.  _ At least you two are cats who work hard and who I can trust. You both would make better leaders than I. _

“Hey.” Stonefur suddenly paused, causing Hailstorm to trip on the smaller tom. “I scent something… not pleasant.”

Rainstar swore as the stench of a fox engulfed the three. “Stonefur, if it’s too much for you, you can go back to camp.”

He shook his head. “No. I’m staying.”

The leader had no trouble sensing his determination and vengeance. “Let’s get going then. If we run into them, no attacking without my order.”

“Got it,” they both replied. Hailstorm rested his tail tip briefly on Stonefur’s shoulder, who bowed his head as they continued forward.

The warriors didn’t have to journey far outside of the territory to find the fox scent intertwined with the even weirder smell of Twolegs. Hailstorm bounded ahead and sniffed a piece of Twoleg prey.

“How odd. Twolegs out of all creatures have never come this far in the woods. What are they doing here?”

“I don’t know, but the fox must have been stealing from Twolegs,” Rainstar realized. “A temporary Twolegplace must be nearby. I’ve heard of them, but I’ve never seen one myself. They’re supposedly made of weird colored fabrics.”

“Should we just leave it alone?” Hailstorm asked, angling his black ears in the direction of the Twoleg prey’s stronger stench. Rainstar thought she scented smoke mixed in. “We don’t need their prey, or their fire.”

“Hailstorm’s right,” agreed Stonefur, digging his claws into the soil. “The fox deserves to eat that crowfood.”

Rainstar nodded to both of them. “Let’s go warn our clanmates to stay away.”

~~~~~

“What’s going on?” Stonefur wondered aloud as the group stepped into camp to find a group of warriors surrounding the deputy.

“He must sending them out on patrol. I can’t believe my former mentor is doing so,” Hailstorm meowed, giving Stonefur a teasing glance. Rainstar let out a laugh.

“I DO know that,” the black and grey tom insisted with a wave of his tail. “But why are they all agitated?”

Rainstar stepped forward and frowned as Nightfang turned towards them with a sly grin.  _ Why did every cat want HIM as deputy? _ “What happened?”

“These warriors and I have decided,” he meowed, “We’re going to search for Ravenstar, and bring her home.”

“She said not to look for her if she doesn’t return in a moon, and it’s been more than one. If she’s alive, she’s probably found other cats to settle down with. I can’t control her pawsteps.” Rainstar leaped onto the rock and the clan turned to face her. “I know you all miss Ravenstar dearly, but I can’t change the fact she left. It was her choice.”

The group of cats started murmuring to each other until Nightfang silenced them with his fangs. “Well, it’s OUR choice to go after our leader, and we’re going to do so.” The tom’s crescent markings rippled in the late afternoon light as he turned to leave with Fireclaw, Icefur, Greytail, and Rainclaw.

Rainstar watched the warriors go, wondering why every cat seemed to be leaving Streamclan, one after another. The camp was still far from full, even with the newer cats steaming in. Nightfang glanced back at his former apprentice and asked,

“Do you want to come with me?”

“No,” Hailstorm replied, as calm as ever. “My duty is to stay with my clan, not to leave it.”

The deputy nodded. “Very well. We’ll hopefully return soon.” With that, he alongside the four other warriors were gone.

“Well…” Rainstar’s gaze swept the remaining warriors. Palespot’s fur was bristling, Stonefur was looking unsure of his surroundings, and others were standing there awkwardly. “It will be alright. We’ll find new warriors and a medicine cat, ones that won’t leave, and… well, life will go on.”

Rainstar leaped down from the rock. “Hey, Rainstar,” said one of the newer warriors. “Who’s going to be deputy now?”

“I don’t know yet, but I’ll decide by moonhigh,” she answered as she padded to her den. Rainstar curled up in her moss dejectedly, taking a few deep breaths to keep herself internally calm.  _ Who in the name of Starclan do I choose? Most of these cats that remain are younger warriors, and many haven’t had apprentices.  _

The blue-grey she-cat looked up as a silhouette fell over her. “Stonefur?”

“I’m sorry that those cats betrayed you. I think you’re a fine and fair leader.” The black and dark-grey tom sat down next to her, twitching his whiskers thoughtfully. “I’ve heard rumors that some warriors are unhappy with your leadership, and I guess that’s because Ravenstar suddenly left.”

“Do they think I’m going to leave too?”  _ Pinestar left first. This can’t be a trend! _

“Maybe, but they’re going after a cat who’s already proven to do so. Maybe they just want a more stable and dedicated clan and have decided to look for another entirely.”

_ For a former loner that hasn’t been here for long, you’re already smart. Well, you already did know a lot before, but I’m glad you at least take my words seriously. _ “I guess so. But I’ve done my best these past few days to make Streamclan thrive. What am I doing wrong?”

“Nothing. One day they’ll look at you think,  _ Wow, she is so cool, Rainstar is so smart and can save us all! _ and then everything will be fine. Maybe it’s because you’re still considered young compared to the senior warriors?”

“I’m old enough to be your mother,” Rainstar retorted. “Sorry I’m not the cat who constantly chooses to get into fights to create dominance. If there’s a peaceful solution, I’ll take it. It’s what my own mentor would’ve done.”  _ I wonder what he’s up to. Surely he’d know how to handle this odd situation. I wish I had his commanding aura. _

“You don’t need to be. Just don’t be afraid to unleash your claws sometimes.” Stonefur held up a paw and flexed his own. “Ours even look alike.”

“I DO unleash my claws,” Rainstar said as she mimicked him. “Now get out of here before I claw your pelt off. I’ve got to think of who’s best fit for deputy now.”

He nodded, his dark blue eyes bright despite their situation.  _ I hope being in a clan with others has begun to heal some of his wounds I can’t see.  _ “I’ll be outside. If I happen to spot anything suspicious, I’ll let you know. And,” he meowed, “I don’t think I should let Shadow and Tiger join the clan yet, at least until this is resolved.”

“That’s okay. As long as they’re safe, that’s what matters.” Rainstar got up from her nest and shook the moss out of her pelt. “I should go and check on them.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> An iconic scene is coming 👀


	17. Chapter 14

The damp forest was silent except for the calling of birds and the rumbling of clouds on the horizon. _It might hail or snow soon,_ Rainstar realized. _Most of the leaves have fallen._

She leaped over the stream gracefully and ran quicker than she normally did, the grass under her paws for less than a second. She slowed down as she reached the shelter, flattening her fur and pushing aside the undergrowth. “Hi-”

“There you are!” Tiger jumped up from where she’d been chatting with her sister. “I knew you’d come!”

“You don’t sound happy about it,” the clan leader remarked. _Since when did her front two teeth get so sharp?!_ _These two have grown so much!_ “Stonefur asked me to check on you.”

“He has a warrior name now? Cool!” Shadow was as cheerful as ever as she greeted the older cat. “Are you here to take us to Streamclan?”

“Well…”

“I’m not going,” Tiger interrupted, her dark brown stripes ruffled. “I’m living on my own, where I’ll be safer.” She dug her claws into the ground and hissed, “I can’t believe you, Shadow, being so eager to be what our kin ran away from! CLAN cats!”

“Maybe this clan will be better than the ones they were in. We’ll be in the same one, after all,” Shadow objected. “And Rainwish here is so nice. I want a cool warrior name, too!”

Rainstar laughed. “My name is Rainstar right now. I’m currently clan leader since Ravenstar disappeared.”

“That doesn’t make me automatically trust you,” Tiger snarled. “I’m leaving, and if we ever meet again, I’m going to tear you to bits for taking my big brother into a CLAN and CORRUPTING him!” She shoved past Rainstar and disappeared into the growing shadows of early night.

 _She’s stronger than she seems,_ Rainstar thought. _Should I stop her…?_ “Shadow?”

“I know she’s been upset, but…” The small dark grey she-cat was staring at where the brambles still trembled. “I thought she would at least try to give the unknown a chance.”

“There are times where it’s better to be more open minded than not and vice versa. I’m glad you’ve both been okay, at least. I predict she’ll be fine, wherever she goes.” 

Shadow sighed. “Thanks. Tiger will take care of herself. Maybe she’ll even go and see if our kin are okay. I really hope they are. Are you sure Stonefur doesn’t want me to come to Streamclan yet?”

“I’m sure. And I hope they’re okay as well. It’s been chaotic lately,” the leader admitted. “But you’ll be a brilliant warrior one day when it’s your time, I promise.”

~~~~~

When Rainstar got back to camp, it was eerily quiet. Stonefur nodded to her next to the entrance. “Most cats went to sleep early.”

“I may as well join them, and appoint the deputy in the morning,” she yawned. “Shadow is well, but Tiger left. She doesn’t want any part of clan life affecting her own. I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault,” the tom meowed. “I’m not surprised, actually. We were raised to not trust groups of cats larger than our own. She’ll be fine; she’s always loved a fight, and always wins.” The prickling of his neck fur contradicted his own reassurance. “I scent a storm on the horizon.”

“I can sense it too,” Rainstar agreed. “Well, I’ll see you in the morning.”

~~~~~

“Rainstar!” She opened one eye to find a paw prodding her shoulder. “Rainstar!”

“What?” she snapped as she got up and shook her dark pelt. “Wha-”

Stonefur was standing next to her, with Palespot behind, her jaw hanging in shock. The awful stench of smoke reached Rainstar’s nostrils. _Fire!_

“Help me get every cat outside of camp,” she ordered, nudging her warriors out of her den. Most cats were already up, while others were blinking away sleep as Rainstar yowled their names.

 _That’s just about everyone,_ Rainstar thought as the whole clan gathered around her, or rather, what remained of it. “Let’s go! Hailstorm, take the lead!”

The big grey tom nodded, and the cats began streaming out of camp through the narrow entrance, one by one. Rainstar and Stonefur were the last two to run towards it.

She was just about to follow the dark tom when they were suddenly pushed back. A blur of black and white leaped past Stonefur and, with claws unleashed, aimed straight for Rainstar’s throat.


	18. Chapter 15

Rainstar dodged Ravenstar’s death blow by a mere mouse-length. “Take care of my clan, Stonefur!” Rainstar called. Debris, burnt by flame, fell down on the entrance as she was pinned down to the ground, snarling,

“Why?” She thrust Ravenstar off of her and rolled to the opposite end of the clearing. Rainstar felt the flames slowly inch closer and closer from where they thrived in the dead tree branches above.

“Because you’ve been in my way for far too long,” the warrior replied, yellow eyes blazing. “I knew that cats would be angry when I disappeared, so I made you my deputy, the cat who would step up while I was gone, to be in the perfect position to be blamed. I never realized chasing Leaftail out myself would work so well to convince the clan you suck,” Ravenstar purred, her tail lashing with excitement. “I only needed an excuse to kill you, and you’ve given me it: You dared to take my place when I was still alive!”

“You told me you wouldn’t be coming back!” Rainstar sprang forward to meet Ravenstar in mid-air. “I wouldn’t have dared to step up if you hadn’t turned your tail on the clan! They needed a leader!”

“Yes. They indeed needed me.” Ravenstar sunk her teeth into Rainstar’s leg. “And so five of them came to me, unsatisfied with your leadership. Too bad you only got to be in charge for a few days!” 

Rainstar managed to thrust her off to the side. A burning leaf fell and hit the she-cat’s white tail-tip, making her wince. Rainstar saw her chance and succeeded in swiping her claws across Ravenstar’s left ear, tearing it open. “Get out of here! You should’ve stayed away after you left!”

“Really?” The she-cat just cackled as blood dripped down her face. “You think Pinestar hasn’t come by to see me a few times? I’ve gotten whiffs of his scent on you more times than he’s visited me, asking for nothing but Streamclan updates. And it’s not even his clan anymore! He abandoned it!” A piece of hail fell onto the ground next to them.

“You’re right. He did abandon it, but he didn’t abandon us. You did though,” Rainstar hissed. “And I don’t exactly think he wanted us to fight one another. We need to work together to stand up against outside threats.” _This is what the signs were all pointing to!_

Ravenstar thrust her muzzle against the blue-grey she-cat’s. “Don’t make ME the villain. I’M the one he chose for leader. I have never doubted his decisions and I trust him very much, and he has trusted me to be in charge, not you!”

“I’M the one you chose for deputy,” Rainstar shot back. “I told you, I didn’t doubt his choice! But I certainly doubt yours!” 

“Well, I think I’m going to doubt his next decision. I’ve heard rumors about how close you two really are. When are you due, _Rainwish?_ A queen can’t be leader, especially a dead one! Or even worse, a rogue one!” Ravenstar was about to lunge forward when suddenly, a crackle of lightning hit the center of the clearing, causing a crack in the ground. Both warriors ducked to avoid the static and the dust, and Rainstar saw her chance.

With a mighty shove, the she-cat pushed aside enough of the debris that had fallen on top of the entrance. As she sped out of camp, Rainstar spotted a decaying branch covering in ash. She thought she saw bite marks at the end of it, past the hail that had begun to fall to soften the flames.

~~~~~

Rainstar ran and ran, as fast as her exhausted, bloody body would allow her. The world was only a blur as she splashed into the stream and began washing her wounds.

_That’ll definitely scar,_ she thought as she sat down on the bank and bent over to lick a deep cut on her right ankle. _That must’ve appeared after she sank her teeth into my leg. Ouch!_

“Rainwish!” Shadow jumped into the stream from out of nowhere to join the injured she-cat. “What happened?! Was it FOXES?”

“Not everything is foxes, Shadow,” Stonefur meowed as he emerged from the darkness. A rumble of thunder shook the air. “Streamclan is safe, not far from here.” His blue eyes widened at her wounds. “Did RAVENSTAR do that to you?!”

It took Rainwish a long moment to respond. “Yes,” she breathed, her head spinning. “I…”

“You told me to go. I should’ve stayed. I’m sorry,” Stonefur meowed, nuzzling her shoulder. “Shadow, do you remember the healing we were taught?”

“I remember… Some things. A few plants,” she nodded hurriedly. “I can heal you!”

“First we need to get me out of here.” Rainwish wanted to cry. _I don’t want to abandon my clan… Was I really almost assassinated just now?_ “If Ravenstar asks you anything, tell her you don’t know where I went. Be loyal to her for your safety.” Stonefur nodded vigorously. Rainwish shook her fur, wincing as some dust was freed. “I’m going to go hide; I’ll be where Shadow is for all of tomorrow and then we’re moving farther away.”

“I’ll come see you then and tell you what’s going on. I’ll be your spy.” The tom nuzzled them both. “Be safe for me.”

~~~~~

“Rainwish,” Shadow mewed as she placed some cobwebs on her wounds, “is there anything else I can do to help? Anything at all?”

“Let me sleep. It doesn’t matter if I’m in Streamclan or not, as long as there’s a strong leader. That was never me.” The blue-grey she-cat shivered. A few tiny pieces of hail had fallen through the bush where she was recovering. “I thought she would win. I…” _I panicked. I didn’t know what else to do but run. I’ve never been that good of a fighter… I’ve failed._

“Let’s go to sleep then,” Shadow suggested. “Hearing all these cats crossing the river was wild, and then I ran into you! I was scared I was going to lose you too…” The she-cat curled up in a small grey and black ball next to Rainwish. “Sleep well! It’s always a little bit better in the morning.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do wonder sometimes if Ravenwing’s favorite canon villain was Ashfur. Hope that wherever she is now, she’s enjoying the current arc of Warriors :)


	19. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> POV change! Stonefur is the secondary protagonist of this story; he’ll be a big help in telling even more details. He always told me a lot when he was around. There will also be a third protagonist... but that won’t be for a while :)

“What’s happening?” Rainwish sprang to her paws when Stonefur arrived the next day.  _ I’m tired of some of these clan cats, but I’ll pay my debt to you. _

“Not a word was spoken against Ravenstar when she took over,” he reported. “But some cats were clearly uncomfortable and still shaken, and… yeah. She led us back to the original camp. The fire luckily didn't spread far.”

His sister popped her head out from behind Rainwish. “Can I join Streamclan now? I’m old enough to be an apprentice, and Ravenstar doesn’t even know we know each other!”

“I-I’m not sure,” Stonefur stammered. “I don’t want her to hurt you.”  _ I couldn’t bear to lose anyone else. And to a wicked clan leader? _

“Ravenstar wouldn’t care. She just wanted me gone,” Rainwish mewed quietly. “Take Shadow with you. I’m probably going to be hunted for.”

“Please?” Shadow begged, hopping around on her little paws. “I’ll be good, I promise! I’ll do my best for Streamclan!”

“Fine,” Stonefur sighed. “But I’m not bringing you into camp tonight. Tomorrow sometime I’ll come back for you.”  _ There are a mixture of good and bad cats here, just like back home. I’m settling into clan life better than I thought I would, but I’m still wary. _

“Really?” The little dark grey she-cat’s blue eyes were as big as the moon.

“Yes, but please be careful. Give yourself a good wash before you go,” Rainwish purred, giving the small she-cat’s ears a lick. “You don’t want Ravenstar to catch a whiff of my scent on you.” She gazed at Stonefur with hope despite the anxiety she must’ve been feeling. “Take care of Streamclan for me.”

~~~~~

Rainwish watched the moon slowly disappear, casting its shadows over the small clearing. Shadow was asleep beside her, her big ears flopping to the side. 

_ I can’t believe you’ll be safer with the enemy than with me.  _ The blue-grey she-cat yawned.  _ I never meant to be in Ravenstar’s way… How unlucky am I to have ended up in that position. I don’t think I’ll ever be calm again when I scent a fire. Why do I not hate her after what she just tried to do? _

A whiff of a tom caught her breath, but it wasn’t Stonefur. Shadow’s ears perked up.

“Don’t worry. It’s ju-” The small feline was already dashing towards the tom that had casually strolled into the forest clearing. He raised an eyebrow in the direction of the light-grey furball.

“Who are you?” Aquafrost asked before Rainwish could intervene. She could hear the distress in his voice. “I’m looking for a cat named Rainwish.”

“I’m Shadowpaw!” Shadow declared, proudly raising her tail. “I’m a Streamclan cat!”

“Oh? Do you know where your clanmate went, then?”

“Not yet you aren’t,” Rainwish snorted as she shook the moss from her pelt and went over to join them. “Aquafrost, this is Shadow. She’ll be joining Streamclan soon.”  _ Without me. _

“I see.”

_ No, you literally don’t. _ “It’s good to see you again. Shadow, could you leave us for a bit?”

“Okay! I’ll be waiting for Stonefur outside,” she mewed cheerfully. “Have fun!”

The two older warriors watched as the young she-cat bounced away. “She’s adorable, isn’t she?”

Aquafrost nodded, his cloudy eyes drifting to wherever elsewhere was. “Yer leg is bleeding.”

“Oh. Mousedung, I shouldn’t have gotten up.” Rainwish limped back to her nest and began reaching for cobwebs to put on her scratch, wincing. Aquafrost sat down beside her and sniffed her injury.

“Did Ravenstar do this to you?” He ran his tongue over her cut, causing her to shiver. “Did she really attack you?”

“Yes. Didn’t you know she left the clan for a while?”  _ And that you’re honestly a big fluffy mousebrain for putting her in power.  _

“No. I came back to Streamclan territory to check on you both.” Aquafrost curled up next to Rainwish and brushed his pelt against hers. “I heard gossip that there was trouble. I wanted to see what it was about, and then I arrived to scent smoke and hear the screeching of terrified warriors, racing away from home.”

“Did you speak to Ravenstar, just now?”  _ Not to be THAT kind of cat, but I want to know…  _

He nodded solemnly. “She claimed she attacked you because she thought you were a threat. But to what?”

Rainwish groaned. “To leadership, just because we disagreed. Well,  _ I _ didn’t make  _ myself _ out of all cats the number one warrior available to be deputy. I wasn’t planning to overthrow her on day one!”  _ And because I’m your favorite, and we both know it. _

He said nothing.

“I just wanted the clan to be happy and safe, and yet she insisted on moving the camp, and conspired against me, when I wanted to do nothing but help in the best way I could! Thanks to her, the new camp she wanted so badly is nothing but ashes,” Rainwish hissed, her neck fur rising. “What did I do wrong?”

“Ye are a thistle to a prancing, proud cat.”

“What about you?”

Aquafrost turned his head in her direction, his eyes mirroring the dawn sky above. “I trust Ravenwing, but what she has done isn’t right. I’m sorry,” he muttered. “I shouldnae have left her in charge; I assumed she was the best choice because she’s one of the most experienced. I was only trying to do the will of Starclan.”

“It’s okay. It wasn’t your fault,” Rainwish answered. “You couldn’t have known she’d do that.”  _ Maybe if you’d been a bit more wary in the first place… Oh well. What’s done is done. _

They rested there in silence, listening to the chirping of birds and the rustling of leaves in the wind. Rainwish finally felt herself calm down.  _ It’ll be alright.  _ “Aquafrost,” she mewed after a while, “What did you sense when you first met Ravenwing?”

“She was one of the first cats I found to recruit,” he recalled, scratching his head. His paws tapped the ground thoughtfully. “She had a kit with her, Blazewing. From the start I could tell she didn’t really give her baby the attention she needed.”

_ There’s nothing crueler than a kit not getting the love they need to survive when they’re older without it. If only she’d have gotten some love, she wouldn’t have been a cat who did terrible things. _

“I asked if they wanted to join Streamclan. She said yes and I brought them to camp with me. As you remember, Ravenwing never really spent much time in the nursery. She was one of the strongest cats to practice battle moves with, and she always brought back a lot of prey. When she was asked to do something extra, she always would. It wasn’t hard to tell that she had been in a clan or clans before and was hardworking. I knew I could trust her with Streamclan when I left.” 

“But you couldn’t trust her with me, right?”

“I knew she didn’t like you. I dinnae think… I should’ve ken Blazewing would’ve gotten that trait of near assassination from somewhere.” The blind tom bowed his head. “I’m so sorry. I should’ve taken you wit me. I should’ve been there to protect-”

“It’s fine, really. Just being alive after all that and healthy-well, besides some scratches-is enough. I’ve been thinking a lot lately, and you know what? Don’t be angry at her. For some reason I’m not; I’m actually at peace. The clan is in the paws of a cat who cares enough about them to keep Streamclan organized and is more skilled than I.” 

Aquafrost was giving Rainwish such a look of surprise that she began to wonder whether a small bit of his sight still existed. “You are the most emotionally mature cat I’ve ever known.”

“Well, I don’t want to waste my time being vengeful. It hurts more than it helps.” She allowed him to groom her neck and ears. “I hope I never fall into that trap. Is there still ash in my fur?”

“Some, yes. It will be on my pelt now.” Aquafrost licked the soot onto his paws. “This is on me.”

~~~~~

“I’m going to watch Streamclan from afar like you do, but I’m going to stay close and make sure Ravenstar doesn’t try and corner anyone else in another fire.” Rainwish watched as the tom finally stopped covering himself in bits of soot. “I don’t know where Starclan has led you to but I’m staying here for a while.”

Aquafrost opened his jaws to respond, but a rustling in the red and orange leaves above them made them freeze. Rainwish looked up to see Ravenstar staring back from a branch high above, clearly upset before leaping away.  _ Well, I lived to still be his favorite. _


	20. Chapter 17

Rainwish wasn’t sure when she had dozed off, but when she awoke, she discovered that Aquafrost had already disappeared. A fresh trout was nearby, and she chewed it softly.

“You’re awake!” Shadow hopped towards the other she-cat, nearly tripping headfirst over a root. “Big guy left the fish for you.”

Rainwish glanced up at the sky. “Is your brother here? It’s almost sunhigh.”

“Nope.” Shadow scratched her ear. “He better be here soon!”

_ I wouldn’t be surprised if he changed his mind. He’s been so anxious about becoming a clan cat, no matter how much he tried to hide it. I’m glad he’s decided to deal with me for so long. _

“Sorry I’m late,” Stonefur panted as he scurried into the clearing. “Ravenstar and Nightfang were keeping close eyes on everyone. I told them I was going on a border patrol to make sure you were gone.” His eyes locked with Rainwish’s. “Nightfang is deputy.”

“Thank you,” she meowed as Shadow bounded towards her brother. “Keep your eyes open for any tricks she might pull. I don’t want anyone in the clan, especially my closest friends, to be suddenly burned alive.”

“We will. We’ll come visit soon,” Stonefur promised. “Meanwhile, let that leg heal. Don’t let it scar.”

“I’ll stay here as long as neither of you get hurt.” She watched as they padded away, her ears drooping dejectedly.  _ I wish I could be at your apprentice ceremony with you.  _ Stonefur glanced back at her, her own nervousness reflected in his expression. 

~~~~~

“I’m so excited! I can’t believe we’re doing exactly what our family told us not to,” Shadow squeaked as she stopped to sniff every tree in Streamclan territory. “We’re CLAN cats! I don’t see anything wrong with that!”

“Our mother’s mother and father couldn’t be together because they were in  _ different _ clans,” Stonefur reminded her.  _ But we can start over here. I’ll never forget any of our lost kin. I pray to this “Starclan” and all their spirits that they survived.  _

“Did you see the big tom that came to see Rainwish earlier?” his sister asked. “He didn’t smell much like a Streamclan cat, but he seemed to know Ravenstar.”

“No. Whoever he is, you’d better not mention him to her. Or talk to her at all, for that matter.” Stonefur led the way across the water and through the trees.  _ I like this part of the territory better. Not a bad place to be. _

Ravenstar and Nightfang were by a dead pine, giving cats orders. A pair of newcomers were being accepted into the clan by her. Stonefur nudged Shadow forward.

“Ravenstar,” he meowed, dipping his head respectfully when no else was speaking to her. She turned to him confidently, seeming as if she hadn’t been in any trouble recently. The only sign she had was a tear in her left ear. “I have found a young cat without a home who could be trained into a useful warrior for Streamclan.” 

Shadow peered up at the leader nervously. “H-Hi. I’m Shadow. I want to be a warrior!”

“Aw,” Ravenstar purred. “She’s cute. Of course I’ll let her in. I haven’t got time for an official apprentice ceremony, but she’s yours.” Nightfang glanced over and gave them a nod. “Train her well. If she expresses the slightest interest in herbs, Nightfang here will send out a patrol to kidnap a medicine cat from another clan to teach her because I’m always getting thorns in my paw pads.”

_ Well,  _ Stonefur thought as Shadowpaw bounced around.  _ Let’s hope this goes well. _


	21. Chapter 18

Stonefur woke up the next morning, eager to start his sister’s official training. _I don’t know how other mentors do it, but Shadowpaw knows a lot already, so I’ll show her everything our kin didn’t have time to explain._ He gave a nod to his friend Hailstorm who was grooming himself just outside the warriors den. _Maybe he can help me out sometime._

The black tom glanced around and saw Nightfang meowing to Ravenstar. _Do you really dislike Rainwish that much? What did she do wrong? She’s so unbelievably calm about the situation but I know her well enough to tell that she’s troubled by her surprise exile._ He did his best to brush his worries aside. _It’s time to train my sister._

~~~~~

Their first official training session went well. Hailstorm had joined them and had given Shadowpaw some clan-born advice of his own as they explored the territory. Stonefur was thankful for his help. _I don’t want to mess this up, especially in front of Ravenstar. Her eyes alone just unnerve me._

“You know,” Hailstorm meowed as they stepped through the reeds. “You don’t have to have started your life as a clan cat to be one. I’m not helping you out with Shadowpaw again unless you really need it. Is she your relative, by chance?”

“She is! My younger sister. How’s you know?”

“It’s not hard to tell,” the grey and white tom purred, swiping Stonefur’s ear affectionately with his paw. The camp was in sight. “I’ll see you around.”

“See you.” Stonefur cast a glance behind him to see Shadowpaw still bouncing around, full of life. “You’d better calm down a bit, before cats think I haven’t let you stretch your legs!”

“You both are so cute,” she laughed. “Race you back to camp!”

“It’s not even a few fox-lengths away!” her brother and mentor protested. 

When they entered, they found chaos. Warriors were arguing with one another, fur bushed.

“Overthrowing Rainstar was a TERRIBLE idea,” Blackstripe was hissing. Many of the newer cats that had joined during her reign were standing behind him. “She did nothing wrong! Sure, she may have been a little disorganized, but that’s Nightfang’s fault for not doing anything.”

“Nightfang did plenty,” Fireclaw snarled, digging his claws into the dirt. “He’s just as good as a deputy under her as he is under our current leader. Ravenstar has every right to lead!”

“Even after she abandoned us? I bet she wasn’t searching for Leaftail at all; she said she’d come back with her and she didn’t! Meanwhile Rainstar stayed here, dealing with our day-to-day drama without complaint.”

“Enough!” Nightfang emerged from the leader’s den, and the wave of annoyance that crashed over every cat made it obvious that he’d overheard everything. Shadowpaw slid behind Stonefur silently. 

“Ravenstar and I were deciding on patrols for tonight.” The current deputy’s dark blue glare swept the clearing. “Ravenstar was chosen by Pinestar to lead, not Rainwish. The-”

“Ravenstar chose Rainwish to be deputy before YOU!” Blackstripe snarled, clearly frustrated. “Why couldn’t Ravenstar have a fair duel with Rainstar? Y-”

“I DID have a fair duel with Rainwish,” Ravenstar purred as she appeared from the darkness of her den. “We fought in the flames. I won!”

 _Only because you tried to burn her alive! You would’ve killed her if she’d stayed any longer! She didn’t want to die, even if it meant losing leadership of her clan. She wants to come back to you, but she can’t._ Stonefur glanced around at the many warriors. _I still don’t know all of you yet by name, but one thing is clear to me--this clan has been torn in two, and Ravenstar is dividing it for good._

~~~~~

_Having no responsibility feels rather pleasant. Too pleasant,_ Rainwish thought as she stretched in the grass, the sunshine dappled her pelt. Her ankle had healed well, though she would have a scar there forever. 

After some time dozing, she decided to hunt for herself. She wasn’t far from the river when she had caught prey. _I miss Streamclan. I miss everyone, even the cats who betrayed me. They’re still clanmates to me and important._

Sighing, Rainwish turned away to disappear back into the wild. Before she could take more than a few steps she came muzzle to muzzle with an anxious Stonefur.

“Hello, furball,” she yawned. “How can I help you?”

“Is there anything _I_ can do?” The black tom’s tail whisked back and forth. “I owe you something for sheltering my sisters and I. There must be something we can change… Rainwish, some cats still support you. Ravenstar is dividing everyone.”

“I can’t make decisions for other cats. I’m glad some cats still think nicely of me but the majority of them didn’t want me as leader; I have to respect that.” _I tried my best, but I’m not that good of a leader. I’m sorry._

“But it’s your clan. Don’t you care that it’s slowly falling apart?”

 _It wouldn’t be falling apart if Pinestar hadn’t left Ravenstar in charge,_ Rainwish thought, flattening her ears. “Of course I do. Stonefur, the choices of each and every warrior are their own to make. If they don’t want me that’s fine. I can't save them if they don't want me as their savior.” She turned away. “We can give them a gentle nudge in the direction we believe is right and nothing more. And I’m not the right cat to lead. I never was meant to be so.” _And everyday, I somehow manage to sound more and more like my mentor. All wise and such. What a tragedy am I._

“Do you regret joining Streamclan?” Rainwish asked, brushing away her thoughts of the tom. “Be honest.”

“Well… I wanted to see what clan life was like. I was curious, since my mother’s kin were mostly clan cats. I think this way of living has its ups and downs, just like the life of a rogue or loner. I like the companionship it brings but not the enemies.”

“I understand. I feel the same way, but I chose to focus on the friendships I make. I don’t like thinking about Ravenstar’s betrayl too much. Not that I didn’t see it coming eventually. And not that we were ever really friends in the first place.” The blue-grey she-cat sat down for a moment and scratched her ear. “Are you up for hunting?”

“Yes,” Stonefur purred. “I’ll bring the extra prey you catch back to camp with my own. That way, you’ll still be taking care of the cats that support you.”

“I appreciate that,” Rainwish meowed, twitching her whiskers. “But I want that prey distributed to the WHOLE clan.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was originally going to have this chapter shorter but eh I decided to merge part of it with the next. I promise to everyone who has read this far that this is building up to some really good moments :) (even if I rush them a bit-reminder that this is a WIP)


	22. Chapter 19

_ I think this is plenty, _ Stonefur thought as he dropped his squirrel next to Rainwish’s voles.  _ This part of the forest is filled with prey. I’m glad Ravenstar hasn’t tried to take it over, or else Rainwish would have to move even further away. _

The blue-grey warrior was gazing up at the sky with an empty look in her eyes. “What’s up?”

“Did you forget about why I’m out here alone?” Rainwish teased. “Toms are so forgetful.”

“I can remember plenty, thanks. You weren’t making that exact face earlier.”

Rainwish wrinkled her muzzle. “Leave me alone and go home, son.”

“I’m not your son.”

“Pfft. You’re young enough to be and you happen to look like me. Plus Shadowpaw sees me as a parental figure, so you’re my kit now, too.”

“Does she really? You’re more like the fun aunt who gets her sibling’s kits into unnecessary danger. Actually, that’s exactly what happened. Thanks, Rainwish.”

“You’re welcome. Now go give these to Ravenstar before she bites your tail off. Actually, before  _ I _ bite your tail off.”

“Alright,” Stonefur laughed. “I’ll see you soon.”

“Wash my scent off the prey! Ravenstar’s nose-”

“I know, I know. Go have some kits of your own to bother all day and leave me be!”

Stonefur could feel the she-cat’s amusement even when he was out of her view.  _ She has such strong motherly instincts. I hope she finds a good mate that cherishes her for who she is. I bet she physically cannot handle my humor sometimes; I must be the greatest nephew-kit ever. Maybe somehow, she IS my aunt. That would be pretty cool, I think. _

The dark grey tom leapt over an oak log near the river that marked the border.  _ I hope that if any of my kin survived the fox attack, they’re doing well, wherever they ended up. And my other sister… Where did Tiger even go? I know she can be so grumpy and rude, but I miss her.  _

“There you are. Wow, that’s a LOT of prey!” Hailstorm meowed when Stonefur reached the camp entrance. “Where’ve you been? Shadowpaw got so bored waiting for her mentor, Palespot finally decided to take her for training!”

“Sorry. I just wanted to make sure the clan was well-fed.” He brushed past the other tom and added his catch to the pile. The squirrel stayed in his jaws as he approached the leader resting nearby. 

“For you.” Ravenstar sniffed the prey without opening her eyes. “You’re a good leader.”  _ Debatable, but I’m not getting on your bad side anytime soon. On accident or on purpose.  _

“Thank you.” She nibbled on its tail without another word. Stonefur turned away, wishing that the division he’d happened to encounter here didn’t exist.  _ I don’t think it should be natural for a clan to be this broken.  _

Hailstorm was swapping guard with Greytail. “Hey,” he meowed when Stonefur approached. “I know you just were outside, but let’s get some fresh air together since there isn’t much to do here right now.” They padded past Greytail and strode through the forest together. 

“I know you well enough to know you’d never have the idea to give prey to Ravenstar,” the grey-and-white tom began, leaping into a tree. Stonefur followed. “Knowing how nice of a cat Rainwish is, I bet she made you do it.”

“She did. She’s actually happy the clan is in the paws of a stronger and more experienced cat, but…” He proceeded to explain how he and Shadowpaw had met her. “She’s physically weaker, yes, and isn’t that intimidating of a warrior, but she has a good heart. She never wanted to be in Ravenstar’s way.”

Hailstorm was nodding thoughtfully. “Yes, I agree with that. Rainwish cared about Streamclan as a whole above all else. She wouldn't want cats to be arguing because of her.” He flickered a withering leaf away with his paw. “It’ll snow soon. Maybe even a whole hailstorm. Have you been in weather like that, before the fire?”

Stonefur wrinkled his muzzle at the pun. “Yes. Terrible for a young kit. One time, I nearly froze to death when I wandered away from my kin to explore.”

“Terrible for kits… Heh. My parents are having another litter,” he grinned. “Palespot and I are excited. Maybe we can mentor them.”

“Shadowpaw would be a warrior by then. Maybe I’ll get one as well.” Stonefur looked up at the cloudy sky. “Maybe by then the clan won’t be so split.”

~~~~~

Shadowpaw had been training very hard for Stonefur over the course of the whole leafbare. She’d been clumsy at times but had always returned to her paws, and Stonefur had high hopes for her. The new kits of Fireclaw and Icefur, Koikit and Mintkit, were playing in the clearing with Shadowpaw when Ravenstar came out of her den with a group of warriors. 

“Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey join here beneath the old pine for a clan meeting!” the black-and-white she-cat yowled as she leaped onto the dead tree. Stonefur and Shadowpaw glanced at each other from across the camp, wondering what this could be about. A soft rain had begun to fall on their pelts, the first sign of the beginning of newleaf.

“Streamclan,” she meowed when the cats had assembled below. “I have a solution to our issue.”

_ Oh, you mean the bickering over your right to lead that hasn’t ceased for a whole season? _ Stonefur thought, shuffling his paws in the dirt.  _ You’re doing something about this NOW? _

“These warriors and I,” she continued, pointing with her wing-shaped tail to Greytail and Fireclaw, as well as Nightfang, “have chosen to help settle the division in our beloved clan by leaving today. We are going to seek out cats that won’t question my judgement under  _ any  _ circumstance.” Her yellow glare swept the clearing as cats uttered gasps of shock. “Whichever of you is fit to lead, do so, but I don’t think a clan with so much squabbling will survive long. Don’t you blame me.”

“You’re joking,” Stonefur heard himself protest. “You can’t do that! If you really do, you’re no better than either of our previous leaders.”

Ravenstar stared at the black tom, lashing her white tail furiously. “Puny rogue. Get out of my SIGHT.”

She leaped down and the three other warriors assembled behind her. Streamclan parted to let her through, some cats sad and others gleeful. Stonefur didn’t like either the leader or the deputy, but without them, the clan would fall apart.

“I can’t believe this! Now I have to wait even longer to become a warrior!” Shadowpaw hissed, bounding up to her older brother. She nearly slipped because of the damp and muddy ground. “I overheard you talking about giving me my assessment soon!”

The rest of the clan seemed to be in a state of unbreakable stillness. “I’ve got an idea,” Stonefur meowed, trying to make his voice not shake when so many cats were suddenly turning to his voice. “I’ll go find Rainwish. She didn’t want to leave in the first place, and since Ravenwing is gone, she can come home.”

Some cats were giving each other doubtful looks, but others were clearly hopeful. Palespot came up to Stonefur and meowed that she would journey with him to find her former mentor. 

Icefur was glaring at the rustling entrance of the camp, keeping her kits close. “Don’t you think she’s a foolish cat for attacking someone innocent, Fireclaw?” Shadowpaw went back to her side to help the devastated queen with the two kits. 

Stonefur felt pity for the grey-and-white she-cat. “Let’s go,” he meowed to Palespot.


	23. Chapter 20

Rainwish tapped on a small icy puddle with her claw, snapping the ice to lap the water. She’d been on her own for moons now, surviving alone just as she had in her early days. The only difference now was that she would forever bore a warrior’s name. 

_ How lonely it is, especially in this cold. I never really thought about it too much before, but it’s really getting to me now. _ She fluffed her blue-grey pelt.  _ At least leafbare is almost over.  _

Rainwish had heard from Stonefur that a few cats had died from the freezing river. One had even fallen into the ice and drowned. Those cats were new members of Streamclan, he had explained. They hadn’t known any better. 

She paused her stroll as the sound of rushing water echoed through her ears. The drizzle had soaked her fur. Rainwish sat under a holly bush to dry herself, hoping one of her former clanmates would come by.

“Hey!” she called when she spotted the dappled pelt. “How are you?”

Palespot was swimming towards her, clearing not enjoying the cold seeping into her fur. “It’s urgent,” she panted. “We’ve been looking all over for you.”

“Who?”

Another cat appeared on the opposite bank. “Ravenstar left again,” Stonefur meowed. “Nightfang and a few others went with her.”

“What?” Rainwish was greeted by a splash when both of them greeted her. “You’re kidding.”

“No. She just… decided to leave. Wanted to keep the peace, apparently.”

Palespot nodded. “I can never tell what she’s thinking.”

“If you’re going to ask me to lead again, I’m going to say no,” Rainwish sighed. “I’m not the right cat either.”  _ I’m going to do okay at first but then end up disappointing everyone. _

“But we haven’t got anyone else with leadership experience. And we can’t ask our medicine cat for a sign from Starclan because we haven’t been able to find one.” Stonefur dug his claws into the ground, wincing as the frost bit him. “I don’t really believe in spirit cats, but we need a cat to lead, another to be second-in-command, and another to heal, and there’s one of them right in front of us, so…”

“We’ve missed you. The whole clan is split over the fact that you were unfairly exiled,” Palespot mewed, burying her muzzle in Rainwish’s shoulder. “You can come home, now that Ravenwing is gone. If she dares to come back we’ll be there this time to help you defeat her.”

“Fine,” Rainwish muttered. “I’ll do my best.”

As they raced to camp, trying to keep the cold from their pelts, Rainwish asked about Shadowpaw. “She’s ready for her warrior ceremony any moment now,” Stonefur replied. “It can be the first thing you do as the rightful leader again.”

_ I don’t think I am, _ she thought.  _ But I’ll give it another go. _

~~~~~

The clan had perked up the moment they scented Rainwish’s scent. Stonefur was glad to see that the majority of the group were happy to have her home. While a few did exchange doubtful, anxious looks, she was accepted as leader again. “I won’t abandon you like Ravenstar did,” Rainstar had meowed first thing. She brushed a few raindrops off her muzzle. “And I’ll find a medicine cat for us all. First things first though, is my deputy.” 

_ And this time it’ll be your choice, _ Stonefur thought.  _ Who do you have in mind? _

Her ice-blue gaze swept the clearing until it landed on him. “Oh no,” he meowed aloud. “Me?”

“I trust you,” she mewed. “You were originally an outsider like me, but you proved yourself rather quickly. And I hear you’d been a brilliant mentor.” She searched the camp again. “Where’s your sister?”

“I’ll do my best,” Stonefur stammered, embarrassed as the clan cheered for him. He turned around to see a worried, grumpy Icefur in front of the nursery.  _ Uh oh. _ “Was she watching the kits?”

The queen had just woken up, her spiky fur a mess. “Where in the name of Starclan are my kits and that apprentice?!” she hissed. “And our leader?”

Palespot and Hailstorm went up to their mother to comfort her. Stonefur beckoned with his tail the first ever patrol of his very own. It was only him and Rainstar, who raised an eyebrow at his odd logic, but he quickly explained that they needed to prove themselves capable. It began to downpour.


	24. Chapter 21

“I still think it’s an awful idea to let this just be us doing this, especially in weather like this.” Rainstar’s voice was barely audible through the drenched forest. She nearly fell into the mud multiple times. “You take the lead.”

“You were named after the rain. You’re just as anxious as me.” Stonefur leaped over a fallen branch. They could both sense the wind picking up speed. “I can’t believe that the kits managed to wander out so far. Did they think a storm is an ADVENTURE?!”

Rainstar knew he was also thinking of when they’d met that day, where he and his kin had been attacked by foxes in another storm before escaping to a once-sunny Streamclan border. “I don’t know. I’m sure Shadowpaw is keeping them safe the best she can.”

A cry from afar made them pad faster.  _ We can’t run too quickly, or we might fall. _

To Rainstar and Stonefur’s horror, the kits were on an unstable overhanging ledge. Part of the river flowed through here, crashing below. Shadowpaw was trying to shove the babies to safety, but they were huddled tightly together and wouldn’t budge.

“Shadowpaw!” Stonefur yowled. “We’re here, don’t worry!”

Her big grey ears perked up at her brother’s words. “They wanted to play! Outside! I didn’t want to let them but they ran out anyway! They snuck out when I wasn’t looking! I’ve been chasing them for so long!”

Stonefur was already making his way up the rocks. Rainstar followed, but Shadowpaw was shaking her head. “The soil is too loose!”

_ They must be freezing! Who cares if I die when they get to live? _ Rainstar watched as Shadowpaw began begging the kits to go home. Koikit and Mintkit finally agreed after some more bickering and a flash of lightning in the distance. 

Shadowpaw tossed Stonefur the first kit. Koikit was crying, and so was Mintkit when Rainstar began licking her furiously.

“Come on!” Stonefur screamed. “The soil is shifting!”

Shadowpaw prepared herself to leap to her brother’s side on the rocks, but the ground collapsed just a second too soon. Stonefur tried to leap after her, but Rainstar pushed him back, the two kits sheltering behind them terrified. “You’ll fall too!”

Rainstar’s sight was blurred by the debris as she left a stunned Stonefur to watch the kits. She jumped into the cold river and began searching. After what seemed like forever her paw hit something moving and furry.

The dark-grey she-cat was dragged onto shore by the scruff. Rainstar with all her might began pushing down on the young she-cat’s chest, helping her cough up some of the debris and water. But it was too much for Shadowpaw; she weakly gave her leader a little smile and rolled back her head. 

~~~~~

Stonefur couldn’t believe what he was seeing. It had all happened too fast. He placed one of the kits on his back and the other hung gently from his jaws as Rainstar gave him a look that told him all he needed to know. He didn’t even feel his own body moving through the damp forest as he followed his leader.

His head was still empty when they padded into the camp. The clan was horrified. Icefur was the first cat to come up to him, nodding quietly, thankful for the rescue of her kits. 

Stonefur curled up beside his sister and buried her muzzle in her fur. Rainstar was grooming her face, and both of them couldn’t hear the saddened meows of others over their own sobs.  _ I didn’t know if a clan cat grieves similar to a rogue, _ he told her silently.  _ But death has visited all of us before. I’ve seen it. And I’ve come to the conclusion it has the same effect on us all. But here…  _ He glanced up at the clan who were sitting vigil next to him. He hadn’t even noticed Hailstorm supporting him.  _ Here, at least, we can all share this burden. _

~~~~~

Rainstar addressed the clan at daybreak. Stonefur wasn’t feeling any less stunned and he was sure she wasn’t either. “Shadowpaw,” she meowed sadly. “You lived a good life. Short, but you made it worth it despite all you lost. And you will forever be remembered as a heroine for making sure the kits made it home.”

Her blue-grey muzzle rested on Shadowpaw’s head. “By the power of Starclan, I name you Shadowstream, after the clan you worked so hard for, even at the cost of your life.”

Stonefur’s ears perked in surprise.  _ I didn’t know you could make an apprentice into a warrior after death. If Starclan is really here, have they welcomed her?  _ It chilled him to the bone to think that her ghost, if spirits were real, could be next to him.  _ I couldn’t have just lost another cat dear to me…  _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First on-screen death... yikes. I'll work more on this chapter later, I think, but it tells what it needs to. That's the whole goal at the moment.


	25. Chapter 22

Rainstar gave the clan plenty more time to say their goodbyes as the sun rose.  _ This is my fault. I should’ve been quicker, should’ve returned home sooner. If I’d just had another moment… _

_ It’s like Starclan has called me back here to be some kind of heroine, but I’m not one. I just happen to be here at this time. This is one of the most unnecessary things that has ever happened. _

“I should’ve been watching her,” Stonefur mewed quietly. “I should’ve waited to go get you. Maybe I should’ve stepped up to be the leader myself.”

“It wasn’t your fault. You couldn’t have known,” Rainstar replied, gently resting her tail on his shoulders. “She died serving her clan; that’s the most noble way to go. Let’s give her peace now.”

~~~~~

Stonefur and Rainstar buried Shadowstream in the morning since there were no clan elders to do the job. “I’m sorry for not being a better brother,” he muttered. “I’m glad you lived your life to the fullest, even if it was cut short much too soon… I’ll never forget you.” 

Rainstar grieved with him for a while longer, before rising to her paws and disappearing into the woods. 

“If this Starclan is real,” he meowed to no one in particular. “Why is this allowed to happen? Why is all this death allowed? Where are all my kin?”

He looked up at the sky through the leaves of the small grove of willow trees in this isolated part of the land. “You will always be missed and loved.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Of course you w-” Stonefur’s eyes widened as he spun around to find his sister gazing at him sadly, partially transparent. “WHAT.”

“It’s me! Don’t worry, you don’t need to rebury me,” she laughed, staying where she was. “Please don’t be scared! Since when was I out of all cats scary?!”

“You’re-You’re DEAD!” he cried, scrambling away. “I can see the trees behind you!”

“I know. It’s weird. I don’t even know how you can see or hear me,” she confessed. “Maybe it’s just because I really want to. Before I disappear, could you keep an eye out for our sister?”

“I have no idea where to find her! And don’t you go to Starclan, if it’s real?”

“It’s real! There are cats there waiting for me; don’t worry about that. But you’ll see her again, even if she doesn’t like it. Tell Rainstar I said hi, okay?” 

Stonefur shivered as she padded towards him, touching her muzzle to his. He felt both warm and cold at the same time as Shadowstream’s ghost faded away into the sunrise. 


	26. Chapter 23

Stonefur was still shaken from his encounter with his sister’s spirit when he finally went back to camp.  _ So that Starclan IS real, and Shadowstream is safe there. Are the rest of our kin there? How do I speak to her again? _

Icefur beckoned to him with her tail. “I haven’t had a chance to speak to you yet. I have to say I’m extremely grateful for Shadowstream’s sacrifice.” She blinked at him kindly. “She was the one who let the kits play outside in the first place, yes, but owned up to her mistake and paid an unnecessary price for it. She took on her debt, and that’s what counts. She will always live on in your heart.” 

“Er… Thanks.” Stonefur’s ears drooped.  _ I miss her so much.  _ “I hope you and the kits are well, after everything.”

The queen tilted her head, biting her lip. “Do you mean Fireclaw? Don’t worry about it. I can’t change his choice. One day, maybe I’ll take our kits to see him. And thanks to your sister, they’re alive.”

~~~~~

Rainstar was hunting without much luck a few days after Shadowstream’s death, the damp leaves against her paws not improving her mood. A rustle of branches was heard as Stonefur leaped down from a willow in a dark blur to join her.

“I can’t do this anymore,” he mewed quietly. The blue-grey she-cat stopped to gaze at him. “I can’t be deputy. I don’t even know if I want to be a clan cat anymore.”

Rainstar’s ice-blue eyes softened. “I feel awful about Shadowstream too.”

“It’s not just that. Cats have started stirring up drama again. I saw you intervene before a fight broke out earlier.”

“If it pains you to be in your position, I understand.”  _ Believe me, I do. _ “You can step down if you’d like.”

Stonefur’s eyes widened in surprise. “You’d let me? Just like that?”

“Of course I will. I shouldn’t have placed such a burden on you in the first place.” His leader shook her head to free the dew on her face. “I’ll have Hailstorm replace you.”

“Th-Thanks. I’m sure he’d be honored.”

Rainstar tapped her paw thoughtfully against the ground. “I originally chose you because I trusted you the most. You’re the exact opposite of Nightfang in my view. I’m sorry for pushing you into that position without any warning.”  _ The same thing happened to me; why did I do it?  _ She shook her head and smiled for the first time in a while. “Thank you for your time as my deputy and for putting up with me.”

~~~~~

Newleaf was pushing its way through the last snow and beginning to bloom as Rainstar was at last beginning to grow tired of leading a clan she could never manage to completely stop bickering among itself.  _ I’ve hung on for so long… I love these cats, but great Starclan, can’t you help me for once? You never let me get nine lives and you politely took away Pinestar. _

She was on a patrol with her new deputy when the scent of foxes entered their nostrils.

Rainstar sighed. “Just what we need right now.” 

Hailstorm blinked. “A common enemy could finally unite the clan,” he suggested, sniffing the air again. His back began to arch. “Is it just me, or has the scent of other cats been drowned out by the fox’s stench?”

“What?” Rainstar unhinged her jaw, inhaling. “Foxdung. There’s enough of ’em to be a clan.”

“I bet there’s even more that the beasts’ smell covers. I don’t think there’s been any fights, though. No blood.”

_ And that’s why I made you my deputy, _ Rainstar thought.  _ Stonefur is just as sharp, but grief has really put him down. I guess I can relate to losing a family member, but I don’t even remember my own kin… I miss Shadowstream. It should’ve been me instead, even if I really don’t have any extra lives to spare. _

The two sniffed around for a while longer, trying to see if they could uncover any other information.  _ The foxes are hungry… There has been sudden death with them, too. Wait…  _ Rainstar lifted her head to find a tuft of familiar fur stuck on a branch. “Hailstorm, come look at this.”

“I wouldn’t know her scent,” he frowned as he observed it. “And you said her fur was darker than this?”

“Yes. But now that I think about it, her fur was a bit… odd.” The black tail fur had turned to speckled white instead of pure black. She dusted off some of the pollen that had drifted onto the fluff. “I can’t believe it. Actually I can, but I really thought Blazewing or Blazestar or whatever in Starclan’s name she called herself long left by now. And Ravenwing isn’t with us anymore. What’s she doing so close to these foxes?”

“I don’t know. I hardly remember her but I’ve got a bad feeling about this.”


	27. Chapter 24

Stonefur had been sent on a patrol with Palespot and Icefur to investigate the smell of foxes overpowering everything else just outside the territory. The three split up to cover more ground more quickly.

The black and grey tom paused when a new scent hit his nostrils. _Cat!_ _Is there another cat out here, so close to where these foxes recently were?_

Deciding that an unfamiliar cat could pose just as much danger to Streamclan, Stonefur began tracking the scent through territory even more alien.  _ I hope you’re not Blazestar, the cat that caused trouble moons ago. Who are you?  _

A she-cat leaped out from behind a holly bush. Stonefur jumped backwards, spooked by her sudden appearance. “Hey!” 

“Hi! Who are you, and what are you doing so close to the foxes?” The stranger had a blue-grey mixed with black and white splotches. Her blue eyes observed his own. “I’m Bluestream of Stormclan.” 

_You have the suffix stream…_ “I’m Stonefur of Streamclan. I could ask you the same question. What’s your group doing out here? Territory? Clan cats love territory.”

Bluestream puffed out her white chest defensively. “I would NEVER tell you Stormclan’s secrets. We’re the biggest clan around, and need a lot of room for our many warriors!”

Stonefur raised an eyebrow. “You… just told me your clan’s secrets.”

Bluestream opened her mouth to respond, before shutting it again. “Ah… sorry. Well, I won’t tell you anymore. Just remember that there’s many of us, and you shouldn’t challenge us to a fight.”

“Don’t worry. Streamclan has its paws full dealing with these nasty foxes,” Stonefur muttered. “I assume you’re busy scouting this area as well. Don’t bother with me.”

“I actually didn’t expect to actually find any other clan so close to these beasts,” Bluestream admitted. “I hope your clan is okay next to them, honestly. You poor thing, lookin’ like you’ve seen your fair share of pain from them.” 

Stonefur flattened his ears, annoyed. “Hey. Don’t call me a ‘poor thing’. Call me a Stonefur.”

“Poor Stonefur,” she mewed in a teasing manner. “You need to be cheered up!”

“I need to get back to my patrol,” the black tom sighed, tearing his gaze away from her bright blue eyes. “My clan needs me more than anything at the moment.”

“Well, alright then.” The pretty she-cat smiled at him, her paws shuffling awkwardly. “Farewell. Watch out for those foxes.”

“We’ll see if I don’t die first. Bluestream, was it?” She nodded and he gave her a wink. “I’ll be around.”

~~~~~

When Stonefur made his way back to camp, he went to tell his leader the news of the existence of another clan. Rainstar wasn’t pleased.

“Were you too busy flirting with that she-cat to get any decent information?” she asked, rolling her eyes. “Don’t let her infatuate you into giving away Streamclan’s weaknesses. I hate to admit this, but you know we aren’t going to survive much longer, right?”

“What? Of course we’re going to survive! If those foxes threaten us, we’ll tear them apart!”  _ For your sake, Shadowstream. _

“I know, Stonefur, but the thing is, our clan is already doing that to itself. Cats are leaving one by one; didn’t you see Icefur and her younger litter leave camp today?”

“I thought she just wanted to take her kits outside for a breath of fresh air,” he frowned. “Don’t they care?”

“Of course they care. But they know a clan that’s obviously broken on the inside cannot survive the coming storms ahead of its warriors. We’ve had no medicine cat, and threats are just stacking up on top of one another. Sure, cats can take thorns out of their own paws, but I may as well disband the clan now, instead of later.”

“You can’t do that!” Stonefur lashed his tail furiously. “That’s disrespectful to Shadowstream!”

“Stonefur, I hate to say this, but if disrespect can save lives, then so be it.” Rainstar looked helpless, her normally bright and cheerful ice-blue eyes clouded. “I’ve done everything I can to stop the division, but I’m not a cat everyone will listen to. I've never been loud enough. What am I supposed to do?”

“I don’t know, but you can’t leave. Not after everyone else I’ve loved has either left or died.”  _ Please, PLEASE don’t go. _

Rainstar’s ears were drooping. “I’m sorry. I’ve tried my very best, but I’m not the cat meant to keep Streamclan together.” He felt her fur brush against his shoulder in the darkness of her den. “Come on. Let’s get this over with.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I haven't shown a lot of actual drama in Streamclan; I'll fix that later on and add some paragraphs when I really edit this.


	28. Chapter 25

“You’re leaving us too? Seriously?!” Hailstorm snarled as Rainstar leapt off the pine.  _ I’ll miss this spot. It still smells like Pinestar.  _ “After Ravenstar?”

“We both caused division here. I want you to create reunion in Streamclan, since I can’t. I tried. I’m sorry.”  _ I wish I was the right cat, believe me. But I don’t know how to stop your endless bickering with one another. _

“I didn’t expect I’d live to become leader.” Hailstorm’s claws were unleashing and leashing on their own into the ground. “I’ll do my best, but I don’t know if I’ll be any better than you were.”

“You will. You haven’t made any enemies yet. Please, take good care of Streamclan for me.”  _ I don’t know what else to say. I’m sorry. _

Hailstorm shook his pelt. “Well, goodbye then.”

Stonefur was waiting for her at the exit. “Will you visit?”

“Yes.”  _ Just as you visited me.  _ Rainstar touched her muzzle to his own briefly. “See you.”

“Stonefur, will you be my deputy?” Rainwish ears’ perked at Hailstar’s offer.  _ Will he accept?  _ “You’re a cat the clan needs the most.”

“Yes,” came the hesitant reply.

The world outside seemed too peaceful to be true as the blue-grey she-cat made her way through the trees, to the river.  _ Wait. _

Rainwish looked down at her reflection.  _ I should’ve told Hailstorm that he can’t get nine lives without a medicine cat… I’m tired of all this mousedung. _

A low, canine growl interrupted her train of thought. Rainwish spun around and was met with the dark silhouette of an approaching, enormous fox.  _ Woah! I’ve never seen such a big fox before! _

She began racing away, clan territory flying under her quick paws.  _ I’ll lead you away, so you can’t harm my warriors. Does the markings of so many cats left on the borders not intimidate you? _

The barking of more foxes made her freeze, giving her attacker the split second to catch up. Rainwish shook and ran towards the roar of the river.  _ Can these things swim? _

She could feel breathing near her tail tip and narrowly avoided the fangs.  _ I’ll lead each one of them far from every cat. They’ll follow my scent into these woods and won’t return. No other cat besides my own pride will be injured today! _

Rainwish prepared her muscles for the leap across the river. The foxes followed, and with a quick glance over her shoulder, the she-cat could see a few of them flailing helplessly in the water. The others who had made the jump were slowing down, exhausted from the chase.  _ Gotcha! _

The largest fox was still after her. Rainwish braced herself for another leap into the nearest pine and squeezed her claws into the bark. She raced up the tree and collapsed in the foliage, hidden from view.

Peeking out from in between the nettles, she could spot the lead fox barking his head off. Rainwish breathed a sigh of relief, curling up on the branch to rest. She flattened her ears and closed her eyes, waiting for the fox to leave.  _ Surely I drowned quite a few of them… For Streamclan’s sake! _

_ So why do I feel somewhat guilty now? I was only protecting my clan from a threat that would soon attack, I’m sure. I left the clan, but that doesn’t mean I don’t still care. _

Her thoughts spun around in the same circle for a while, her gaze focusing on the pine branch below. Rainwish didn’t even notice another pelt brushing against hers for a good moment.

“Oh!” Her blue-grey head shot up and hit another branch, making her dizzy. “HELLO.”

“Noo jist haud on,” Aquafrost purred in her ear. “Yer heid’s full of mince.”

“You always show up in the most unexpected places at the most random times,” Rainwish meowed, lashing her tail. “You’re even more elusive than I can be, and I don’t like that.”

“Since when were ye elusive?” The huge tom rubbed his cheek against the other warrior’s. “I’m glad to see you again.”

Rainwish couldn’t help but nuzzle him affectionately and lean into his thick, wild fur. “Me too. What have you been up to?”

“I’ve wandered as Starclan told me to. Since they haven't been exactly clear, well… I’ve begun planning a new clan soon. I miss being around other cats.” Aquafrost licked her ears. “My kin are well, and some may join me. Would ye?”

“Really? I’d love to, when it’s time,” Rainwish purred. “Just don’t leave me completely in charge, for Starclan’s sake. And what about Streamclan?”

“I have always cared, but Starclan stripped me of my responsibility to it and leadership. I cannae return, or they might be angry.”

“Angry ghosts. Pfft. I believe they exist, but at the end of the day, we make our own choices while we’re alive. They can’t truly stop anyone even if they try.” Rainwish shook her head. “I can’t be mad at you for leaving because I just did as well. Twice, actually.”

The large tom flicked her ear with his own. “Yer just as insufferable as I.” 

She laughed. “We should get off this tree. I can feel the branch slowly breaking.” She started climbing towards the trunk.

Aquafrost leaped after her, making the entire pine shake. “Hmm, am I that big?”

“You’re all muscle and a big heart under that untidy pelt,” she replied, reaching the ground first. “And I don’t know how you can even claw your way up to without sight.”

“A ken yer scent anywhere.” He joined her on the forest floor, sniffing the air. “Were those foxes threatening you?”

“Well…” Rainwish shuffled her paws awkwardly in the grass.  _ You were so excited to see me, you forgot for a good moment that I was being chased. Silly furball.  _ “You see, ever since you left, Streamclan has slowly been splitting into two. You know Ravenwing and I haven’t been getting along, but a whole bunch of cats have left the clan with her. Then more started leaving, one by one. The remaining warriors just endlessly bicker with one another, for no reason most of the time, and whenever I stepped in…” 

Aquafrost rested his tail on her shoulder. “They dinnae listen, no?”

“Nope, and no matter how much I tried to reunite everyone, I just kept on failing. So I left, leaving another cat in charge. I can’t do this anymore. And don’t even get me started on the beasts moving in just next door.” She sat down and hung her head, ears drooping. “I’m too young and inexperienced to lead. They see me as such.”

“Really?”

“YES. I didn’t expect Ravenwing to make me her deputy out of all cats. If I had to make an assassination plot of some sort, I’d make it take less time. Great Starclan, give me a break.”

“Ye can travel wit me,” Aquafrost offered. “I’m a rogue right now, as you know. Before I make a new clan.”

“Really? What’s your kin up to then? How’s everyone?” Rainwish flopped down and rolled in the grass. “Is Mapleshine well?”

“Aye,” he purred, laying down beside her. “Where do ye want to go?”

“I thought I’d leave that up to you. Show me places where you’ve been before we met or something.”

“A cannae show you everything, but I can show you places cats haven’t trotted in seasons. Are ye sure ye want to leave Streamclan behind?”

_ Am I? I should be; I already took my leave. I’m sorry, Streamclan, but I can’t help save you if you can’t listen.  _ “Yes,” Rainwish answered. “Show me the way.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, he was always a serious, silly furball. How I miss him.


	29. Chapter 26

Stonefur narrowly avoided a swipe from Hailstar, their practice fight going better than he’d hoped. Other warriors and the few apprentices left in the clan were sparing nearby. 

“You’ve all done well today,” Hailstar meowed later that evening. “Whenever the foxes decide to attack, we’ll be more than ready.”

The warriors cheered. Stonefur felt delighted that everyone now had a common enemy to fight instead of each other. “Stonefur,” his leader meowed. “Come over here. Everyone else, go back to camp and rest.”

He nodded and padded after the grey and white tom to the edge of the large clearing. “What’s up?”

“I just wanted to say thank you for supporting me. If Streamclan is wiped out soon, then at least we’ll be united at the end of it.” He ran a claw through the dirt. “I have a sense that I’m going to die soon.”

“What?! But you’ve just became leader! You have nine lives to lose, not one.”

“No.” Hailstar shook his head. “I never got nine lives. We have no official medicine cat to take me to wherever they sense Starclan’s presence is.”

Stonefur flattened his ears. “Did Rainstar not give hers up?”

“I don’t know. I’m starting to think she never got any in the first place, due to Streamclan not having a medicine cat when she was here. We don’t know if she REALLY got anything when she came back to camp that day. Plus, what if Ravenstar was the one to never give hers up? Or perhaps it was the founder himself. I don’t know, and frankly, I’m ready to finish this.”

The grey and white tom sat down with a heavy sigh. “Have you heard what some cats, including our own, are saying about this clan? They’re calling it ‘Dramaclan.’ I would be mad, but, well, they’re not wrong. Do you agree?”

“I do. I don’t want the clan my sister sacrificed her life for and the clan Rainwish grew up in to go to waste. Where do we go from here?”

Hailstar inhaled a deep breath. “The cats Shadowstream knew are mostly gone. The siblings she saved left with our mother. I’m going to try to keep us remaining warriors all together, until the end. If you can find a better solution, let me know. I can’t control the fate of each one of us.”

~~~~~

While Rainwish was still itching with worry for Streamclan’s most likely nonexistent future, she couldn’t help but feel comforted by Aquafrost’s paw beside her own. She loved his stories of yesterday and how he listened closely to hers. He didn’t have the answer to every question, every wonder-but he theorized with her. She loved Pinestar in a way she hadn’t really spent her time thinking about too much before.

The two had traveled through hills and valleys previously unknown to Rainwish. The path Aquafrost created with his great forepaws paved the way. As they journeyed he showed her places he’d wandered. He hadn’t been to any of these places long, always anxious to check on Streamclan every now and then.

The wind whispered quietly through the fields, flicking the petals and dew from the tulips onto the two warriors’ fur. It was peaceful enough for Rainwish to finally have a moment to cry over everything that had gone wrong. Aquafrost quietly sobbed alongside her.

They traveled for days more. The she-cat wasn’t sure where they were going, but Aquafrost’s paw steps now had a steady rhythm, signaling that he had a destination in mind. When they reached a ridge, they stopped.

“I know this place,” Aquafrost murmured, pointing with his tail in the direction of the valley below. “The wind is the same.”

Rainwish peered down into the night. Narrowing her eyes, she could see a waterfall in the distance and cats swarming around it. “Who’s over there? Your kin?”

He nodded, his big ears drooping. “Not the ones you’d like to see,” he mewed. “That is my brother and his clan. We cannot go any further.”

She leaned against him, hoping she would provide some comfort. “He won’t let you come home,” she meowed, “or the others. So you’re going to have to fight him.”

He sighed. “I wish I dinnae need to. So many cats will die; Darkstar is a brute.” 

They edged away from the cliff. “What was his warrior name again?”

“Darkheart. He always distanced himself from Mapleshine, Pinefall, and I.” He buried his muzzle in her pelt. “He’ll kill you if he catches us together. Let’s go.”

“How do you know that?” Rainwish dug her claws into the ground, resisting Aquafrost’s nudges. “I’m no threat.”

“No. I am. Yer wit me, and I cannae lose you. Not after…” He paused and bit his lip, lashing his tail. “I know how you feel, but I can’t love you like that.”

“I-What?” The blue-grey she-cat tilted her head, more confused than upset. _Is it that obvious…?_ “What do you mean?”

“You know what I mean. We can’t be together, not when my presence puts you in such danger. You don’t understand.” Aquafrost was trembling, reliving a memory he clearly did not want. “He’d murder you on sight. I may not be able to see anymore, but the truth appears as light as day.”

“At least you knew him!” Rainwish snarled, tackling the huge tom. He gasped in shock before wrestling with her, the two tumbling around in the flowers. “I never knew my siblings! Or any of my kin, for that matter! You’re lucky! My kin may suck as well, but I at least would like to know who they were! I bet they wouldn’t kill me on sight! You don’t know that!”

Much to her surprise, muscular Aquafrost let her pin him down. “You don’t know that either. I don’t want you to be hurt because of me,” he repeated calmly. “Having the chance to wander this place again… Too many memories of yesterday.” He stared at nothing and everything with his cloudy eyes. “Did you know I could see once?”

“You’ve implied it,” Rainwish hissed. “What does that have to do with our current topic of discussion?!”

Rainwish couldn’t believe how calm and peaceful Aquafrost was being. “Let me tell you,” he mewed softly as he pulled her close. “I care for you, sight or no sight. I was born with barely any sight in one eye, and my good eye got worse as I grew up. I want to tell you how much I’m glad I can’t see anymore, because I can witness one less part of the sorrow.”

Rainwish made an awkward noise with her throat as their muzzles touched. _Stop being so transfixed by him._ “Just tell me what happened to you.”

He sighed and sat up, letting her tumble off him into the grass. A bunch of blue and white rose petals flew everywhere, blinding Rainwish for a moment. Aquafrost’s ear twitched towards the ridge, listening for a second for approaching pawsteps. _I doubt any cat heard us from this far away._

“Let me tell you about my brother,” he began. “We were born here in the valley, the kits of Auroraclan’s leader, Aurastar. We were okay for moons until a she-cat named Juno sacrificed herself to save me from falling. I suppose that started it.” 

“Juno? That’s an odd name.”

Aquafrost shrugged. “She just sort of wandered into camp one day. Darkheart was in love with her, no doubt. We both were friends with her, but we never hung out with her at the same time. When she pushed me away from the cliff and accidentally fell herself, he got the wrong idea.”

“We grew apart after that. Our father Aurastar and mother Oakflower died protecting us from an attack from the four rival clans, who were always jealous of Auroraclan’s success. We were taken in by one of those clans; kits can always be put to good use. Darkheart really fell away from us then, and as apprentices he befriended a she-cat named Berryshade.” He shuffled his paws awkwardly. “She… sure was something. She asked to be my mate instead of his.”

“Ouch for him,” Rainwish winced.

“But she never liked me,” Aquafrost continued. “We had a litter of five: Dragonheart, Acidtooth, Frostwing, Venustail, and Skykit.”

“Frostwing, after you? Why weren’t they in Streamclan? Why just Dragonheart?”

“Yes, she was named after me. Skykit died soon after birth.” He closed his eyes. “Berryshade barely gave them milk. Mapleshine had to feed my kits as well as her own litter, since she had Vipertooth and Honeykit at the time. I don’t know why I agreed to partner with her. Perhaps I was just sad.”

“I would be sad too,” Rainwish mewed in sympathy. “Is that why you’re so afraid of him?”

“No. When I tried to love again… Oh Greyfur, I’m so sorry,” he choked. “Darkheart ordered his top warriors to kill her and our kits when they were out hunting one day. Stormfang, Silverheart, Spiritstripe, and Aqualeaf.”

 _Another kit named after you._ Rainwish rested her tail on his shoulder, stunned. “I-That’s terrible!” _What do I say to something as horrific as that?!_

“It’s okay,” Aquafrost murmured softly. “It won’t happen to you.”

“You’re right. I’ll die a different way,” she meowed, sounding a little more harsh than she intended. “I’ll die for my clan in its final moments. Not for any particular tom who can’t stop stalking me.”

“I dinnae stalk ye,” he protested. “I just think you smell nice.”

“I get it now. You want me because my scent will mask your own dirty pelt. Okay, I’m sorry,” she sighed as Aquafrost gave her a serious look. “Listen. I get that you’re afraid. It’s gonna take me another moment to fully process what you’ve just told me. But here’s my advice: maybe you need to put that fear aside and try again, to heal, for your own sake. And also because I like you quite a bit. You know that, and you out of all cats in the whole world deserve to be happy. And I don’t know as much of the world as you do. Aquafrost, you’ve suffered alone enough. Let me do my best to love you, if you’ll give me the opportunity.”

Rainwish rose to her paws, shaking the rose petals from her pelt. “Streamclan is going to die soon, I can sense it. I can’t save them, but I’ve decided I’ll be there until the very end.” She turned away from him and began to pad away into the night. “I’ve never done it before myself, but I think it’s very noble of someone to die for those they love.” _I’ve seen it. Oh, little Shadowstream…_

“Then I’ll come with you. To the border, at least. Starclan might get angry if I stay too long.” Aquafrost listened for a moment longer to the sound of the crickets, before following. “I’d better not hear of your noble death anytime soon.”

“We’ll see,” she mewed. “I’m sure you’re the best cat to die for.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Side note: Aquafrost was renamed Thunderclaw in that clan and Mapleshine was Leopardfur. Pinefall and Darkheart’s names weren’t changed for some reason. In case you read tags, which I need to make sure are complete :)
> 
> Also another note. Aquafrost was created approximately a year in the real world at most before Rainwish? I'm not sure, but boy, did he and his kin have some adventures in that short timespan.


	30. Chapter 27

Aquafrost snored softly next to Rainwish, the twitching of his fur giving away the fact that he wasn’t dreaming well. The she-cat let him cuddle her in his sleep, partly because she had always found him a great snuggler and partly because of the nightmare he was having.  _ I wish I could heal him entirely. He’s suffered so much; even if he truly opens up to me I don’t know if he’ll truly recover. I hope that just me being near him is enough. _

Rainwish dozed herself for a bit before she heard pawsteps. She opened her eyes to find an unfamiliar blue-grey warrior staring down at her, slightly see-through.  _ NOW Starclan comes to see me?  _ “Who are you?”

“Greetings, Rainwish,” he purred, extending a giant white forepaw. “My name is Aurastar.”

_ Oh geez. _ “Is this about him?” She nuzzled Aquafrost. “Look at this big furball.”

Aurastar purred at the sight of his son. “No. He’ll come to,” he meowed. “I’ve come to speak to you.”

“Really?”  _ Is everything well in Streamclan? Probably not. _

“I don’t have good news to share.” The giant tom narrowed his bright blue eyes at something behind Rainwish. She turned her head to look but only saw darkness. “You’re in great danger.”

“Because of what?”

“I-I don’t know what that thing is,” Aurastar muttered. “But you’re going to be hunted for. Don’t look beyond where the river closes off. Run from them, for your safety.”

“I-No. I’m going home to Streamclan. They won’t listen to me, but I want to die with them,” she hissed, arching her back at the other blue-grey warrior.

“That’s not what I me-” A gust of wind blew him to fragments. Rainwish woke up, banging her head against Aquafrost’s chin as she jumped to her paws.

“Great Starclan,” he gasped, cloudy eyes fluttering open. “I thought I was the one with the bad dreams…”

Rainwish quickly explained to him what had happened. Aquafrost purred at the name of his father. “He died to protect me and my littermates. Did I tell ye-”

“You can tell me later. I have to get home. Aurastar was probably talking about you, actually.”

“And yet he came to you? Rainwish, we’re both in trouble, but you’d be in less danger if I wasn’t with you. I can’t come home with you but I can take you there.”

After a quick catch of fish at the water nearby, they set off through the wildlife of newleaf. “I have an idea,” Aquafrost mewed after a while. “We could go look for signs of your kin near where I first found ye. Maybe they came back for you.”

“If what your father said meant that I’m not supposed to go back to Streamclan, maybe I can join them,” Rainwish agreed. “I hope they’re nice.”

The two began to follow the river, padding for days. They ignored where they would’ve turned to enter Streamclan territory, the shining sun through the canopy creating long shadows on the forest floor. 

“It was this place, I think,” Rainwish meowed when they entered a clearing with a chestnut tree resting on its side against an ash. “Does it smell right to you?”

“Aye,” nodded Aquafrost. “We can start here.”

_ I don’t want to stay too long, _ Rainwish thought as she sniffed the upturned roots of the chestnut.  _ Now that we’re here… Something just… feels off. I don’t know how to explain it, but…  _

A rustling in the leaves above her made her freeze. Something was moving around in the ash branches, which Rainwish realized were dead.  _ What happened to this tree? The ash should be alive; it’s almost like it’s infected by the chestnut. _

A dying leaf landed on her muzzle, and as she shook it off, she saw another cat staring at her from above. Rainwish narrowed her eyes at the stranger, about to hiss, when the black she-cat flickered to a silver tabby with black stripes. She screamed as the green eyes bore into her ice-blue, and much to her shock her response was another shriek.

“Rainwish? What happened?!” Aquafrost was running towards her from the other side of the clearing. The force of his embrace tore her gaze from the ghost’s, and when Rainwish looked again, the… whatever it was had gone. She buried her muzzle into Aquafrost’s pelt and took a deep breath.

“Ah,” he mewed thoughtfully when she’d calmed down enough to explain what she saw. “Perhaps that was what you were warned about instead of not going back to Streamclan at all.” 

“You believe me? That I saw something that weird?” She knew it wasn’t odd for him to automatically do that, but she was flattered anyway. “Was it going to attack me?”

“I dinnae think it was very friendly, so I assume so. If we ever meet it again, you can be sure I’ll tear its pelt off,” he promised, giving her ears a soothing lick. “Let’s go home.”

As they left the clearing, Rainwish took a hesitant glance back at the trees she’d seen whatever that cat was.  _ A cat shouldn’t do… whatever that thing did. Even a dead one. _ She narrowed her eyes at a tuff of dark fur caught in one of the lower branches.  _ I don’t know who or what you are, but you won’t take me. _

~~~~~

Stonefur was patrolling the border by himself despite the overwhelming reek of fox. A rustling in the bushes across the river made him stop to see Bluestream bursting out of it in a fit of leaves.

“Great Starclan! Are you alr-” A huge ginger blur was just behind her. Stonefur let out a yowl of fury as he tackled the fox head-on and wrestled with it. Bluestream scrambled to her paws to assist. “You won’t take any other cat I care about!”

“Stonefur,” she gasped as they fought. “Let me handle this one. You need to warn your clan-I came to-” The fox narrowly missing her neck. “They’re coming! All of them!”

“All the FOXES?! How many?!” Stonefur cried as he slammed his forepaw down on the bushy tail of the beast. It whimpered and scurried away. “Bluestream!”

The blue-grey splotched she-cat was running in the opposite direction of Streamclan. “Tell your clanmates!” she called.

_ You’re just leaving me to fend for myself after I saved your pelt?! _ His eyes widened at another fox approaching from nowhere and he fell backwards as it challenged him to battle. A roar of rage was heard as Hailstar thrust the fox aside, and he looked dizzily up at the sudden change in the cats that had come to fight alongside him-Streamclan had finally united itself once more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That scene with Aurastar is very faint and blurry in my mind. The person behind Aquafrost pretty much pretended to be his father Aurastar for a bit and gave Rainwish a bit of a backstory. I don’t remember the names of the two cats he made my parent cats, they were a black she-cat and a blue-grey tom but I do remember my original name was supposedly going to be Shine, according to him. Also, it took place in my treehouse den, the current Streamclan camp, instead of Sarepia Forest.


	31. Chapter 28

“Are ye ready?” Aquafrost meowed when they finally reached the border again. “I… dinnae think A should go back.”

“I know. I’ll see you soon.” Rainwish gave him one last nuzzle. “Don’t you go disappearing on me. I don’t know where you’ll even go but I’ll find you.”

“I’m sure you will,” he purred. “Finish this for me.”

Aquafrost was long gone by the time Rainwish could begin to smell the camp. Much to her horror, she began to hear caterwauls of war from afar. 

_ If I die today, I wouldn’t mind it, _ she thought, gritting her teeth as she raced through the territory so familiar to her.  _ Who am I, exactly? Where am I supposed to be? I don’t have a permanent answer to either of those questions, but perhaps there’s nothing more than a temporary one. This moment, I am meant to die fighting for these cats, whether they like me or not, to the very end. For the first time in a long time, I feel as though we’re united again. We are Streamclan! _

As Rainwish skirted into the heart of teeth and claws to take her place, she aimed for the nearest fox of the great skulk. “Enough of this!” she snarled, slicing open its muzzle. Blood spilled all over the ground at the force of her blow. The fox whom she had attacked, a bit smaller than the others, whimpered in pain. 

Rainwish was about to claw it to pieces when she spotted a blur of a non-Streamclan cat attacking one of her own.  _ Who… Who could be fighting alongside these monsters?! _

Something about the stranger seemed oddly familiar, and as the white she-cat turned around to face Rainwish with a gleeful grin, she knew who she was facing. “It’s you!”

“Sure it’s me. I told you I’d create a clan of my own! Meet Foxclan!” Blazestar jeered, raising her bloody muzzle to the darkening sky. A terrible storm was beginning to shake the trees, and the river was picking up speed. But that was nothing compared to this cat.

“What… happened to you? Your fur…” The black-and-white she-cat had once mirrored her mother Ravenwing, but now most of the black had been replaced by more white. “Are you sick?”  _ Did Ravenwing know? _

“Not physically,” she purred. “That’s okay. No medicine cat needed. That grey and white she-cat was a bit too hard to kill anyway.” Blazestar was shrugging, as if this was an absolutely normal day. “And hey, now I can end all the rest of you, because Ravenwing gave you fleabrains more attention than ME! When I’m the most important cat around!” She dove to confront Rainwish, and the blue-grey she-cat was more than ready to combat her. “Maybe I like the rogue half of me better!”

Rainwish wrestled with her, the two tumbling through the battles of others. “It’s not being a rogue that makes you like this. It’s what you chose to do because of it! Any clan cat could be just as ruthless as you if they tried, because you once were one.”

“I know! But who cares? Labels are dumb, aren’t they? I don’t need to be a star to lead! I just have to take the time to set up a perfect trap with my new clan! My skulk!”

Rainwish felt herself beginning to tire, but she didn’t care.  _ Am I going to have to kill this cat? _ She despised what Blazestar had done, but she couldn’t help but remember the tiny, neglected kit she had once been when Rainpaw had arrived in Streamclan. “I’m sorry for what happened to you,” she meowed. “Looking back on it all, I should’ve done something more. But you made your choice to thrust your pain and fury upon others. You chose your fate.”

The white she-cat lashed her tail furiously, her remaining black splotches all condensed on her sneering muzzle and tail-tip. Her dark amber eyes held nothing but the rage she had been waiting so long to release. Before either of them could make another move, a fox ran over them yipping ridiculously loudly. Rainwish and Blazestar rolled away from each other to witness other foxes racing away as well. 

_ Is it over? _ Most of the foxes were gone now, and there weren’t as many cats dead as she had feared. She waved her tail at Hailstar, Palespot, and Stonefur, who were running towards her, scratches in various spots on their pelts.

“You’re back!” Palespot was the first to reach her former mentor’s side, touching noses with her briefly. “I knew you’d return!”

Rainwish opened her jaws to apologize, but Hailstar silenced her with a wave of his dark-grey tail. “We know. Yesterday’s gone.” He turned to the rest of the Streamclan cats, who eagerly awaited his directions.  _ I knew he’d make an excellent choice. _ “Let’s make sure they’re gone for good.”

Rainwish cast a sideways glance at Stonefur, who was gazing at her. “You can still be angry at me all you want,” she meowed. “I just ask that you take it out on the foxes if they come back.”

The black and grey tom nodded. “I’ll do that. It’s good to have you home.”

She nuzzled each of them individually. Before she could say anything else, a low growl was heard behind her. She spun around, having completely forgotten that Blazestar was still there and ready to fight. But the she-cat didn’t move. Instead, she threw back her head and started mimicking the sounds the foxes made. Rainwish flattened her ears, petrified at the thump of more foxes that hadn’t been there before. This wasn’t over.

Blazestar leaped forward as the skulk returned into the clearing. This time, she wasn’t heading for Rainwish. Instead she and Hailstar met claw-to-claw in a bloody match. The blue-grey she-cat and the others were busy confronting the new foxes as they did so.

A caterwaul of agony came from the grey and white leader as he finally succumbed to the exile’s vengeance. None of them could reach him in time to meow their farewells.

_ We can’t keep going on like this, or else we’ll all be dead, _ she thought.  _ And Hailstar’s sacrifice would be for nothing. After his parents and mentor left Streamclan, he was still willing to do that. May Starclan welcome him with open paws. _

Stonefur was clearly trying not to cry as they fought together. “I don’t want to do this, but we might have to flee! I don’t want to abandon you again, but you’ll be dead if you don’t either!”

“No! How dare you suggest that!” The black tom slashed the ginger side of the animal. “We either die fighting or these beasts do.”

Rainwish sighed and the blood bath continued. She knew how exhausted he must feel alongside her. “You’re more noble than I.”

More paw steps were heard approaching. “More?!” Stonefur yowled. “Watch out!”

“Those aren’t monsters of any kind,” Rainwish gasped. “They’re cats like us!”

A black tom with light-grey tips was leading at least a hundred cats into battle. The Stormclan cats entered in an enormous wave of teeth and claws, outnumbering the skulk with ease. 

Rainwish couldn’t comprehend what she was seeing.  _ There’s so many, and they’re saving us?! A disorganized group that could hardly call itself a clan at this point?!  _ The huge leader led the charge with brute force.

She sprung forward with Palespot at her side, and together they worked alongside another she-cat to drive one of the larger foxes back. Stonefur was right behind them, eyes wide at the stranger beside them.

“This one is about to give up,” Rainwish hissed to her former apprentice as the grey and white tabby sunk her teeth into the beast’s pelt. “Let’s tackle another one.”

“Rainwish,” Palespot panted. “My brother is dead. I think I’m going to die, too.”

“No, you’re not! There’s still a future for us all,” the blue-grey she-cat snarled. Pushing her grief and guilt aside, she flung herself forward and shoved Palespot aside to tear out the fox’s throat.

“We’re going to lose anyway! Both Streamclan and the foxes have lost.” She glared at the stranger with them, before disappearing into the thicket of animals. “No matter what these cats do to help, I’m going to die a Streamclan cat!”

Rainwish shook off some of the blood. “Then I’ll die with you.”  _ I’ll take on responsibility to the fullest extent now. _

The fighting raged on. Rainwish wailed in grief when she couldn’t manage to intercept the killing blow for her former apprentice from one of the foxes. 

“They’ll have to be gone soon,” the unfamiliar she-cat meowed. She was blue-grey with black and white splotches. “I’m Bluestream, and I went to grab my clan to save you.”

Rainwish glanced at Stonefur staring at the other blue she-cat and rolled her eyes. “Well, thank you. Streamclan never deserved this.”

They watched as the foxes finally began to leave, for good this time. Blazestar was fleeing as well, bleeding from both her ears.  _ I don’t like wishing harm on any cat, but… Good. Get out of here and never return. If we ever meet again, you WILL die. _

The Stormclan cats helped each remaining Streamclan warrior carry their clanmates to their camp for burial. Rainwish and Stonefur hauled Hailstar through the trees, and their pawsteps were the only sounds to be heard.

The cat who Rainwish assumed was the leader stood in the center of the clearing, directing each cat to a good spot. His blue gaze met Rainwish’s own and he bowed his head respectfully. “I’m sorry we could not come sooner.”

Rainwish shook her head. “We don’t deserve what we got from you… We would all be gone by now if it wasn’t for you. Thank you.”

He nodded. “I am Darkstar, and this is Stormclan,” he meowed.  _ Darkstar…? No, this can’t be the same cat as Aquafrost’s brother. That cat is said to have eyes the color of blood…  _ “We were passing through, and a patrol picked up the scent of your clan mingled with the foxes. We need more land for our ever-expanding group, but this place will be left alone now. There is too much death here.”

Rainwish bowed her head. Stonefur padded up to stand next to her, and they both glanced forlornly back at Hailstar, Palespot, and the rest dozing in the sunlight for the last time. 

“We will talk later, once you’re ready,” Darkstar meowed. “Tonight all of Stormclan grieves with you.”

“No, let’s get this done with. Darkstar, these cats need a new home now. Stonefur and I will disband Streamclan now, and the remaining warriors will be taken in by Stormclan. It’s the least we can do for your kindness. What do you think?”

Stonefur gave the other tom an agreeing nod, clearly not going to say anything for a while longer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's both saddening and relieving to FINALLY have Streamclan done. There's Stormclan to cover as well as one more clan, but both will have fewer chapters than Streamclan. Phew. Time to finish up the next allegiance.


	32. StormClan Allegiances

**StormClan**

**Leader:** Darkstar - big black tom with grey points and blue eyes.

**Deputy:** Frostfur - white she-cat with grey points and yellow eyes.

**Medicine Cats:**

Rainfern - grey she-cat with darker grey tabby stripes and green eyes.

Nightgaze - dark blue-grey she-cat with a black underbelly and very dark blue eyes.

**Warriors** : 

Shadewhisker - grey and black she-cat with yellow eyes.

Greyspot - darker blue-grey she-cat with ice-blue eyes and a dark grey spot on the back of her neck.

Stonefur - black tom with dark grey ears, chest, belly, paws, and tail tip; blue eyes.

Bluestream - dark blue-grey she-cat with black and white splotches all over; light blue eyes.

Cloudjumper - pale-grey tom with white splotches and deep blue eyes.

Robinflight - black, white, and orange she-cat with robin’s egg blue eyes.

Summerstorm - mottled orange and brown she-cat with white splotches and amber eyes.

Brownpelt - black and white she-cat with brown splotches and amber eyes.

Amberheart - grey she-cat with black spots.

Cloudsky - light grey and white she-cat.

Snowstorm - white she-cat.

Badgerfang - black tom with a white stripe.

Owlflight - light brown she-cat.

Shadowpelt - grey and white scarred tom.

Nightpelt - black and grey she-cat.

Owlfeather - brown tom.

(200+ more)

**Queens:**

Fernflower - tabby she-cat, mother to Lilackit, a grey she-kit.

**Outside of StormClan**

Aquafrost - big white tom whose fur is stained with ash, mud, and blood. He has many battle scars and has blind, ice-blue eyes with misty pupils.

Tiger - huge black she-cat with dark-brown stripes all over and sharp green eyes.

Icicle - light grey she-kit with white icicle-shaped markings, a few brown splotches, and blue eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you Shadewhisker, Robinflight, and whoever else posted on the blog years ago; the link to it will be put in Endnotes. I’ve made up some descriptions for Frostfur, Cloudsky, Snowstorm, Badgerfang, Owlflight, Nightpelt, Owlfeather, and Fernflower due to the fact that I don’t have every description for every cat available. If information is recovered one day I’ll go back and correct this. I did play around with Icicle’s design a bit.  
> Remember that Stormclan Darkstar is NOT the brother of Aquafrost/Pinestar. The evil Darkstar is another dude entirely. Confusing, I know, and the evil Darkstar never appears in this story, but I’m not changing names. I’m doing my best to stick as closely to what actually happened as I possibly can while also throwing a few minor changes in to improve it.


	33. Chapter 29

_ Thump. _ The squirrel dropped some kind of nut before the she-kit leaped, missing her target by a narrow mouse tail-length.  _ Oops! _

She turned around to see her mother stalking towards her, clearly disappointed, her dark brown muzzle twisted angrily. “I really tried this time,” the light grey she-cat muttered, trying not to shake. “Sorry.”

The older she-cat just stared at her, waiting for her to make another move. “I’m sorry,” she mewed, trying to be a little louder and bolder. “That was no good of me.”

Her mother gave a short nod before turning away.  _ Try again, _ that meant. 

Icicle had spent her first days in a clan, but she didn’t remember any of it. Her littermate Toadkit had died alongside their father Frogleap when the foxes had come, taking his life before Tigerfang could reach the dark grey tomkit in time. Their tiny clan of Rippleclan had scattered into pieces, and Icicle had been running alongside her mother for the last six moons. Despite her hatred for cats in large groups, and for most cats in general, she’d loved the little Rippleclan, and was determined to tear apart every animal that stepped on their former land. And Icicle was determined to help, no matter how awful she seemed to be at hunting.

“Tomorrow, we will begin the journey home,” Tiger meowed that evening when Icicle had finally caught a mouse of her own. “We will visit the old territory of our former clan, Rippleclan. The ONLY acceptable clan that deserves pity. You must learn to respect and honor your ancestors as we make sure the land is clean.”

_ I don’t know much about them, since you haven’t said much other than the sad parts…  _ Icicle nodded in agreement vigorously. She wouldn’t be a disappointment when they arrived where they needed to be.

The next days were nothing more than traveling and the occasional piece of prey. Tiger didn’t say much, she never had, but Icicle hoped that maybe they’d find another cat she knew.  _ Maybe we can all be a family again. I wonder what other cats are like; are they just like Tiger? _

When the previously known was finally in sight, the smell of unfamiliar cats reeked the air. Tiger started swearing under her breath, muttering to herself.  _ Who moved here after RippleClan fell? _

“Step one,” the black and brown tabby hissed, scratching the dirt with one claw. “We find out who these cats are, and see if we can take them down from the inside. How disrespectful they take what belonged to someone else! I would love to tear apart those nasty foxes, but remember we scented their blood on the way here.”

Icicle glanced around at their surroundings. It was a gloomy forest like any other, but she could see the trees begin to part a little ways away. “I-I’ll do my best,” she stammered, shuffling her paws in the mud.

~~~~~

The smell of death was all too much as Stonefur worked alongside Rainwish to bury the dead. Stormclan warriors were helping as well, pity twitching in their whiskers. 

“I’ve failed,” muttered Rainwish as she pressed her muzzle against Hailstar’s. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have given you that responsibility. I should be lying here instead.”

Stonefur let himself speak for the first time since the second wave of foxes. “Streamclan was doomed to fall apart not because of either of you, but because very few acted like they were in a clan in the first place.” He rested his tail on her sunken shoulder. “Come on. Let’s put him to rest with the others.”  _ I’m so sorry, Hailstorm… You were a good friend. I won’t forget you. Please forgive us. _

A mockingbird was chirping somewhere in the distance.

Palespot and Hailstar were placed next to each other in the camp, curled up as if the siblings were kits in the nursery once more. Darkstar turned away from them and climbed onto the old pine the founder used to sit, beckoning to Rainwish with a flick of his tail.

_ Goodbye, my clanmates. I wish I had known you longer. _ Stonefur looked up at the two. 

“Streamclan,” Darkstar meowed, his voice echoing through the trees and reeds. “My deepest condolences to you all. All of Stormclan griefs with you tonight.”

“Darkstar and I have made an agreement,” Rainwish continued. “We’ve decided that any former Streamclan cat can journey with Stormclan and join them permanently. I will be going with them, and…” She closed her ice-blue eyes for a moment and then opened them again. “I will be changing my name, as I don’t feel comfortable wearing the name of a cat who couldn’t stop so many from losing their lives. If you have any cat to blame, let it be me.”

“We will carry this guilt together,” Darkstar calmly meowed, the grey tips of his black ears twitching. 

_ I can’t see you as anything other than Rainwish, but if that’s what you really want,  _ Stonefur thought, digging his claws into the dirt.  _ And it was never your fault they all acted like that.  _ “I’ll come with you.”

“Thank you,” she muttered. “I’ll go by Greyspot now.” She glanced at Darkstar, and he nodded in approval. “Streamclan is officially disbanded.”

Ears drooped and Stonefur felt various pelts press against him to have a seat next to their loved ones. He felt a pelt brush his, and he looked up to see Bluestream had joined him. The vigil had begun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally, our third protagonist! I actually don't remember interacting with her very much, but oh well.


	34. Chapter 30

Greyspot shuffled awkwardly around in her new nest, the moss soft yet causing her to twitch.  _ It was too kind of Darkstar to give us all extra nests, but great Starclan, the moss near this “sun-drown-place” is slightly different.  _

The cats who had fought alongside her and her warriors had been scouting and claiming new territory. Stormclan’s camp was many days' journey from where they had first met. The scenery there was entirely different; there were fewer trees, much more grass, and as many grains of sand as there were stars in the sky. Some cats called the great water nearby a “sea”, and Greyspot thought it sounded like a Twoleg word.  _ Not that I’ve ever met any Twolegs. I bet they stink. The word sea is nice though. _

Yawning, she got up, gave herself a good lick, and proceeded to emerge into the light. Despite it being just after daybreak, the camp was already buzzing with activity.

The home of the great clan was settled near a sun-drown-place, where the sun would disappear every evening into an endless sea. Greyspot liked the smell of salt and the sand that tickled her paws when she left her hidden nest in the small caves in the rock. Glancing around, she could see Stonefur with the she-cat he was always with now, Bluestream. They were entering the camp with prey in their jaws. “Up so early?”

“Yeah,” he mewed, nodding at her. Bluestream flicked his one of his ears affectionately with her muzzle and went to speak with some other warriors Greyspot hadn’t met yet. “Bluestream is showing me the territory and everything. I really like it here, actually.” He shuffled his dark grey paws in the dirt awkwardly. “How have you been doing?”

Greyspot felt a sudden longing in her chest.  _ Don’t think about him and the clan he left behind. Not again. You’ve got to stop this. Move on.  _ “Fine, I suppose. I love the scenery here, and every cat has been way too nice to us.” She looked up at the morning sky. “You’re doing well, and I’m glad.”

“Don’t think I don’t miss our clanmates,” he meowed, touching muzzles with her briefly. “I’m just trying really hard not to cry all the time in front of our new family.”

“Me too,” she muttered as he padded away to join the others. “Me too.”

Soon Greyspot was invited to a hunting patrol. She felt a wave of sadness when the patrol leader declared that they’d be hunting in the area closest to Streamclan, instead of adventuring out on the rocky cliffs, but she pushed forward, erasing her thoughts and knowing with each paw step she would earn this Darkstar’s loyalty and pay for his kindness.

As she split off from the others and began stalking a noisy magpie, another scent caught in her nostrils. A familiar voice faintly rang in her grey ears. 

She left the magpie to screech and raced into a cluster of ferns, then up a maple. Leaping through the canopy, she searched for the tom, slowing down when his voice became clearer.

Finally she saw him standing in a small field of flowers. Greyspot dug her claws and observed, swearing as the wind suddenly decided to change its direction.

Aquafrost’s expression lit up when he caught a whiff of her scent. “Rainwish?” His ears perked up and he turned his sightless gaze to the sky. “Where are you?”

_ I should be angry at you, _ Greyspot thought.  _ You abandoned me and Streamclan. The clan I cared for so deeply is gone because of you! I don’t care that you did it because Starclan sent you on some vaguely stupid mission; you still did it. And I need to move on. _

“Rainwish?” he called again. “It’s me.”

“You shouldn’t be here,” she meowed in a low growl from the leaves. “I don’t want to see you.”

“If it makes ye feel any better, I cannae see you either,” Aquafrost purred. His face turned from joy to worry. “What happened to Streamclan?”

“Why is that any of your concern? You left us a long time ago, and you’re on enemy territory. We had our moment, okay? Leave.”

“No.” His cloudy eyes looked as if he was actually looking at her. “Tell me what happened.”

“Tell me what you THINK happened,” she sighed, leaping onto a lower branch to observe him closely.  _ Giant messy furball here hasn’t changed a bit. _ “And make it quick, before my new clanmates kick you out of here.”

Aquafrost paused, sliding a claw through the grass. “You were leading,” he meowed. “I sensed tension when I came into the camp. I placed roses on their graves.”

“Tell me how they died.”  _ Tell me if you’re as guilty as me. _

“Foxes were a part of it. The clan wasnae doing well internally. I am sorry,” he muttered as she climbed down to join him in the clearing. He hung his head. “I should’ve been there, and I should’ve prepared you for leadership. I didn’t think you’d be chosen as deputy, despite your natural skill. Ravenwing disliked ye from the start.”

The blue-grey she-cat stood facing him. “It was all part of her plan. I don’t blame you for that. I just…” His head was still bowed. “I just wish you’d stayed. For all of us.”

“Not just for ye?”

“Streamclan isn’t about me. No clan is about one single cat.” She pressed her muzzle against his own. “I did what I could in your absence. I didn’t make the greatest score on your test, but…”

“Yer still alive,” he murmured in her ear. He shivered. “I didn’t mean for it to be that difficult; I didn’t think it would become a test. I should’ve put you over an unclear omen. I’m sorry to you and to all the new warriors of Starclan.”

“It’s over now. It’s okay. I don’t blame you although you’re quite frustrating. We both did what we could when we led.” The world seemed to stop as they simply stood there in silence, the breeze gently ruffling their pelts. “Hey, have you-”

“Greyspot!” yowled one of the Stormclan cats from her hunting party.  _ Uh oh. I can’t be seen with an unfamiliar cat if I want to prove my loyalty to this clan. _ “We’re heading back to camp!”

“Coming! Sorry, I’ve got to go,” she meowed, shaking herself out of their trance.

“Streamclan is still alive?”

“No, a lot of us chose to join Stormclan. It’s a huge clan, and you’re trespassing.” She nudged him away. “I’ll see you soon, okay?”

Aquafrost blinked at her, clearing itching to know more. “Okay.”

~~~~~

Stonefur had settled into Stormclan well. Despite the grief that clung on his pelt, the relief of not witnessing bitterness in all five senses was refreshing. He’d made new friends and hunted alongside the old.

An apprentice ceremony was going on that he and Greyspot had been asked to attend. “I’m not ready for a new apprentice,” the blue-grey she-cat had sighed. “I don’t understand why Darkstar is giving us so much trust after just half a moon of being here.”

“Robinkit and Summerkit,” Darkstar meowed, beckoning the two kits forward with his tail. “You both have reached the age of six moons, and it is time for you to be apprenticed to train as a future warrior of Stormclan. From this day on, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Robinpaw and Summerpaw. Robinpaw, your mentor will be Stonefur, and Summerpaw, your mentor will be Greyspot. I hope they both will pass down all they know on to you.”

Stonefur touched noses with the small brown, white, and ginger she-cat, her robin egg blue eyes beaming into his darker ones. Greyspot was more hesitant and careful as she touched noises with the mottled light-brown and white she-cat.

“We’ll do our best for you,” he promised. The two littermates grinned at each other eagerly. Greyspot let out a purr.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aquafrost is a big hero but also a big idiot sometimes, at least in my eyes :)


	35. Chapter 31

_ I did it! _ The crow fell limb in Icicle’s bloody jaws.  _ I caught prey first try! _ The large she-kit had worked relentlessly over the past few days to achieve it, even at such a young age.  _ Tiger said I wasn’t old enough to be considered an apprentice yet, but I sure am close! _

The ways of the clan fascinated her, and it made her even more determined to help her mother destroy the cats who had taken their land.  _ Even if they’re another clan, they’re still not Rippleclan. They’re not my father’s clan. _

She took the crow back to the black and brown tabby she-cat proudly, the evening shadows settling over. Tiger was crouching in the ferns, her sharp green eyes unsettled and unsatisfied. “Icicle, I need your assistance.”

_ My first task! _ “What is it, Mother?”

“I spotted some cats in the distance just now. I need you to go investigate, as you’re smaller and sneakier.”

_ In a few moons, I’ll be just as big as you.  _ Icicle nodded, eager to please her. Tiger flicked her tail at the forest beyond them, and the trees grew thin as she snuck away. It wasn’t long until she was able to spot a bunch of unfamiliar cats on the moor. Far beyond them was something big and blue Icicle didn’t know the name of.

_ Something about taking in new cats…? They’re saying things clan cats would say, _ she thought, angling her brown ears towards them.  _ These are clearly a clan, but who are the others joining them? _

Before she could listen more, one of the warriors glanced in her direction and began hissing. Icicle turned around and raced back into the darkness as fast as she could.  _ Tiger said we’re bigger than average cats, but I don’t think that fact helped…  _

~~~~~

“Well?” Tiger meowed as Icicle tumbled into their nest in a holly bush. “What did you discover?”

“There’s a bunch more of them, and they’re taking new cats in. They’re a clan,” her daughter panted. “And they spotted me…” Her fur was still wild with excitement. She would make these cats pay for whatever Tiger asked! 

“What were their names?”

“Uh, I think one of them was a Frostfur? She seemed important. I don’t know though.”

Tiger nodded, hidden pride showing in the depths of her eyes. “You’ve done well, but remember, there’s still much to be done.”

“I know,” Icicle meowed hurriedly. “And I’m ready.”  _ To make you proud. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter; I may lengthen later.


	36. Chapter 32

One advantage of the ledges in the cliffs was that you could sneak out of camp easily in the dark and the sound of the sea would cover up the sound of pawsteps and pebbles falling. One disadvantage was that it was dark, causing Greyspot to nearly slip and plummet to her death multiple times.  _ Maybe this isn’t the exact paradise I thought it was when I first arrived, _ she thought with a snort.

Aquafrost was waiting on a tree branch just on the outskirts of Stormclan territory.  _ It’s going to be a pain to travel out here frequently. You’re such a long ways away, _ Greyspot thought as she gave him a detailed explanation of everything that had happened.

“And you know what? I really want to claw you to pieces right now,” she grumbled as he rested his head on top of hers. “I’m so mad. Our clan-no, my clan-Streamclan should not even be considered yours because you’re a terrible furball-is gone for good. And you didn’t even help.”

“Starclan told me-”

“I don’t care what nonsense Starclan says when cats I care about are in danger. How can dead cats be any wiser than living ones? It’s annoying to choose between you and clan, especially now.” The she-cat placed her paws on his shoulders and thrust him onto the ground. Aquafrost let her win their quick tussle.

“I regret not being able to be there. I’m sorry.”

“You regret not being there. You could’ve been there.”

“Yes, you’re right,” he sighed. “You’re right.”

The two rested in the grass in silence for a while, the stars twinkling above them. Greyspot thought she saw what Aquafrost called a small aurora for a few moments.

_ Hey, I haven’t told him I changed my name. _ She glanced over at him to see his eyes were closed as he meditated.  _ Eh, he doesn’t need to know. _

“I didnae want to block your way,” he murmured. “Yer a skilled and brilliant warrior. Perhaps Starclan wanted to test you, not me.”

“If you think I don’t need you, you’re extraordinarily mistaken,” she hissed. “Do you really think that? I’ve never had another cat before you who has stayed by my side for such a long time without getting tired of me. You gave me, a random rogue, a loving home I couldn’t have known otherwise. I could go on for hours about why you’re important to me but I’m tired from the walk out here.”

She rolled over and pinned him down. “You’re an imperfect furball but you’re the most perfect thing that has ever happened to me. And from what I’ve heard Starclan sucks. So shut up about them.”

“T-Thanks,” he stammered, with the dumbest, perplexed expression known to any warrior on his face. “I’m really not-I-”

_ Oh, Rainwish, what are you doing?! You made him cry! _ Aquafrost’s tears were soaking up her blue-grey pelt.  _ Starclan, I think you’re really annoying sometimes, but what do I do?! _

The big tom was trembling. The she-cat felt herself begin to sob. “I’m so scared,” he whispered. “To take on another mate, after what happened to my previous… Rainwish, if anything bad ever happened to you, I don’t think I could go on living.”

She thought about what he’d meowed earlier about Berryshade, a cream and white she-cat who cared nothing for their kits, and Greyfur, a grey tabby, who had been killed alongside their babies by his brother’s finest warriors.  _ Funny how I unintentionally chose the same prefix on her. _

“I couldnae bear to lose ye. I’d lose my mind. I’d do anything to keep you safe, even if that means staying as far away as I can from you.” Aquafrost’s cloudy eyes reflected the night sky. Every star was a wish, but there was one star that shone brightest of all. They both knew what it represented.

“Well… Streamclan is through.” The blue-grey she-cat let him lick her chest. “I’ll do my best to not leave you, even if you think it’s a bad idea for me to be around. I know how much you want me.” She wiggled her eyebrows at him, forgetting he was blind for a second. Her suggestive tone got the message across, though.

“I’ll never leave you, if you’ll have me,” she muttered. “But I’m going to stay in Stormclan for a few moons. I need to repay their kindness.”

“Okay.” He paused his cleansing of her fur, ears drooping. “I’ll come visit you here again soon. You can’t get rid of me, and I can’t get rid of you.”

“I know,” she mewed. “And I don’t want to.”

~~~~~

Icicle was worried about Tiger’s new plan. The giant she-cat was approaching an apprentice on the edge of Stormclan territory who looked to be not much older than Icicle herself, ears dropping. This had been happening in the evenings for a few days now, and Icicle was growing tired of the stranger.  _ Doesn’t she know how to be quiet?  _

“My mentor isn’t here half the time,” she was meowing to Tiger. “I, Summerpaw, want to be a great warrior, but Greyspot’s been so distracted…”

“That must hurt. I was once a warrior myself,” Tiger meowed smoothly. “Hopefully, my fangs don’t scare you too much.”

“Oh no! You’ve been very nice to talk to,” Summerpaw squeaked, her bright amber eyes gazing up at Tiger’s confidently. Icicle wished she could snatch some of that confidence for herself as she observed from afar. “Will you train me instead?”

“Train you?” Tiger tilted her head innocently, smiling kindly yet looking terrifyingly. “I’d be honored to train an apprentice with such potential. I can teach you much more than that  _ Greyspot _ ever could.”

Icicle wondered if her mother had something personal against Summerpaw’s mentor, but she brushed the thought aside, trying to memorize the practice fighting taking place.  _ Tiger must be gaining her trust to receive new information, _ she realized.  _ Information I couldn’t ever snatch on my own…  _


	37. Chapter 33

Stonefur and Greyspot were training their apprentices. Robinpaw and Summerpaw were both doing well, though it was becoming increasingly obvious that Summerpaw wasn’t happy with her mentor. Stonefur took Greyspot aside after training and asked what was up.

“Well… You’ve settled in here well. Much better than I, and I’m happy for you. I’ve been thinking about our old clanmates and… I’ve been seeing my old leader.”

“Pinestar? The cat who left Streamclan seasons ago?” Stonefur had never met the tom personally, but he’d overheard a lot of talk about him. Greyspot nodded.

“I can’t go with him,” she mewed softly. “Stormclan needs me more. I have to repay my debt to Darkstar.”

“But you aren’t happy here.” Stonefur rested his tail on her shoulders. “Summerpaw can be given another mentor. There are lots of other warriors here willing to do the job. If you really want to leave, just do so. I won’t stop you.”

“I can’t do that to her. I can’t break such a young cat’s trust.”  _ I won’t suddenly decide to ditch her and the clan like my own mentor did. Stupid furball. _ “I’m staying.”

Stonefur blinked at her. “Alright. I’m glad you’re staying, but if you change your mind, give me a chance to say goodbye. I know how hard it is to leave your kin behind.”

~~~~~

Icicle sighed, shuffling her paws in the dirt. Her mother was fox-lengths in front of her, showing Summerpaw a fighting move.  _ Some random stranger is better than me.  _

The small she-cat observed for a while, lashing her tail.  _ One day I’ll be as big as Tiger, and I’ll be so terrifying…  _ The white icicle-shaped markings on her pelt shivered on her dark grey pelt.  _ This she-cat will be the first to go. _

Still, despite her gift of determination from her mother, she couldn’t but think this was… wrong, in a way. Something was off as she watched the cheerful Stormclan apprentice learn things much quicker than Icicle ever had.

“You should join me in Stormclan,” Summerpaw meowed suddenly. “I’d say I found you lost in the woods, and Darkstar always welcomes new warriors.”

Icicle could see the flicker of sadness and anger in Tiger’s eyes in the darkness of night. “No. I appreciate it, but I don’t feel as though I’m meant for clan life anymore.”

“Will you think about it then? Pretty please?” Amber eyes pleaded with the muscular she-cat. Much to Icicle’s surprise, Tiger actually seemed to be slightly moved by it. “Pleeeeease?”

“I’ll… consider it.”

~~~~~

The days went on, and Icicle always felt chills down her spine. She wondered if Tiger would actually step foot into Stormclan territory.  _ She wouldn’t. She HATES clan cats, _ Icicle thought, doing her best but ultimately failing to pounce on a mouse.  _ Would she really leave me? _

“Icicle!” Her mother’s voice stopped her in her tracks. “I’m leaving.”

“W-What?” Icicle flattened her ears as the dark tabby’s shadow consumed her.

“You know what I mean,” she hissed, arching her back in both defiance and a stretch. “We’ve got work to do, Icicle. We have to infiltrate this clan and do as much damage as we can.”

_ I don’t think Summerpaw would like that, but she took my place, so I’ll let her have it. _ “What do I do?”

“Wait out here until I return. Practice your fighting moves and see if you can actually manage to do something decent. I’ll come back every day to check on you.” The sun streamed out behind the she-cat. She bared her teeth to the sky. “It is my time.”

~~~~~

Stonefur padded on the beach with Bluestream. The sunset was setting behind them, and Stonefur hoped he could make a move that night. “How have you been?” she asked as they played in the sand. 

“I’m feeling a lot better now,” the black tom meowed, brushing pelts with her. The sand was soft under his paws, and her fur softer. “I don’t think the grief will ever go away. But I realize my old clanmates wouldn’t want me sulking because they’re gone. And now I have new cats to take care of.” He gave her a long look. “Including you.”

Bluestream purred and rubbed her puffy cheek against his. “You sure I haven’t been taking care of you instead?”

At that moment, a huge wave of sand was unleashed. Stonefur covered Bluestream’s eyes and shut his own. “Hey!”

“Stonefur! Bluestream!” Summerpaw was skittering to a stop, nearly crashing into them. “I found a new cat!”

“What? Did you tell Gre-” A strikingly familiar scent entered his nostrils for the first time in seasons. He slowly opened his eyes to see his younger sister slowly stepping towards him, her dark pelt contrasting the sunset sharply. Except she wasn’t little anymore-Tiger was twice his size and had the sharpest teeth he’d ever seen. Her eyes were still the same piercing, calculating green. “How did you-”

_ Shadowstream said to look for you, and I didn’t. _ Stonefur felt himself panic as Tiger faced him, power rippling under her black and brown pelt. “Stone.”

The way she said his name wasn’t particularly hostile, but it wasn’t friendly either. “T-Tiger.”

“Tiger.” Stonefur felt his usual confidence return.  _ How did she take me off-guard like that?  _ “I’m glad to see you’re well after so long.”

“That can be debated,” she snorted. She let him bury his muzzle in her shoulder briefly. “How… How are you?”

“Who’s this?” Bluestream interrupted. “Summerpaw, who is this cat, and why does she know Stonefur?”

“Stonefur? When it comes to warrior names, I thought you’d have picked something more creative and non-canon,” Tiger chuckled. “That’s funny. Then again, you’ve always been a joke.”

Stonefur’s eyes narrowed. “This is my little sister,” he sighed, a bit more exasperatedly than need be. “The worst cat to ever walk the forest.”

“That’s right,” Tiger purred. “And I’m proud of it.”

“Little?” The two siblings turned around to see Greyspot and Robinpaw approaching them, alongside another apprentice, Cloudpaw. “You’re certainly not little anymore, Tiger.”

Tiger glared at the blue-grey she-cat. “You always were something else, Rainwish,” she growled. “Being ‘compassionate’ like that immediately ticks my suspicions.”

“You were a kit. You needed my help, or else you would have starved,” she protested. “And my name is Greyspot right now.”

Despite the argument, Stonefur was overjoyed to see his sister, even if she looked as if she’d be more than willing to tear them all apart. “I don’t like the look of this cat,” Greyspot meowed in his ear that night after Darkstar had let her into the clan with the warrior name Tigerfang. “But I want to give her a chance.”

“Me too,” he replied. “Me too.”


	38. Chapter 34

Icicle torn the blades of grass into unidentifiable shreds underpaw. She missed her mother, the only cat she’d ever spoken to, even if Tiger could be so mad sometimes. And her hunting had only gone well some of the time; she was trembling with frustration and hunger as the days of loneliness passed.

“You know what I’ll do?” she hissed to no one in particular. “I’ll tell those warriors that we’re coming for them myself! I’ll tell them you’ll tear them apart so they don’t welcome you anymore!”

She trotted into Stormclan’s territory that night, pretending to be confident by holding her tail high. It wasn’t long before she ran into another cat.

“Hmm,” the blue-grey stranger muttered, sniffing Icicle curiously. Icicle couldn’t figure why this cat wasn’t intimidated by her or even hostile. “I haven’t met every cat yet, but you don’t smell like Stormclan. Who are you?”

“Uhh…” The warrior didn’t look threatening, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t bite. Icicle thought she saw a glimmer of fangs that looked like a somewhat shorter version of her mother’s, but just as sharp. “Do you use those?”

“Use what?”

“Your, er, fangs,” Icicle squeaked, shaking a little. “Do you?”

“If I really need to. I don’t even realize I’m using them sometimes. Actually, I don’t like using them at all when it comes to fighting.” The she-cat scratched her ear casually. “Are you looking to join Stormclan? I’m not exactly the cat to talk to… and I have somewhere to be.”

Icicle wondered where she was going this time of night. “Er… Actually, I have an important message.”

“Oh? For who? I may not know them since I’m still new.”

“For, um, everyone you know. Ahem.” Icicle cleared her throat and stood up a little taller. “A great doom with befall Stormclan.”

The warrior raised an eyebrow and wrinkled her muzzle in amusement at the most squeaky voice she’d ever heard. She was not nearly intimated as Icicle had foolishly hoped. “You’re as big as me but you’re cute. Go home, kit.”

“I-I can’t. I don’t have a home.” That was the truth. Icicle didn’t have Rippleclan to return to, a clan she barely remembered. Tiger was the only other cat she had.

The she-cat’s eyes softened with pity. “I once didn’t have a home either. Poor thing, you’re starving. You need my help.” She nudged Icicle gently. “I’m Greyspot. You?”

“I-Icicle. I’m very scary.”  _ And very scared. _

“Come to camp with me. You’re lucky I decided to… hunt tonight.” Greyspot turned away and disappeared into the tall grass, beckoning Icicle to follow with her tail. Icicle was hesitant, but she realized how useful she could be. If Tiger would spy on a clan from the inside, Icicle wanted to as well. She wanted more than anything to be helpful. Greyspot glanced forlornly over her shoulder at something Icicle couldn’t see.

~~~~~

Stonefur was doing his best to reconnect with Tigerfang in camp that evening as they rested in the shade. It wasn’t going as well as he’d initially hoped, but this was Tiger out of all cats. He nearly got his ear torn off when he told her that Shadowstream had died.

A commotion at the camp entrance caught his eyes. Greyspot was padding alongside a large grey, white and brown she-kit, with a wild look in her eyes. His sister tensed beside him.

The she-kit spotted them and her blue-green eyes widened. Stonefur exchanged a concerned glance with Greyspot, while Tigerfang kept an unreadable expression. 

“She said her name was Icicle; I think she’s a young lost rogue. I’m gonna go get Darks-” The blue-grey she-cat flattened her ears as the young cat started screeching.

“You’re all in danger! Great danger!” Icicle swung her head around the camp. Every cat was staring at her with horror and disgust at her outburst. “Your doom is near!”

“That’s nonsense,” a warrior nearby muttered. Tigerfang stomped up to the intruder and scratched her muzzle without a word. Icicle stumbled away, trembling as the blood poured down her pelt.

“Tigerfang! She’s just a kit!” Stonefur and Greyspot cried out at the same time. Stonefur scrambled to his paws to shield the poor thing.

“How can one cat be a threat?”

“ENOUGH!” Darkstar emerged from his den, irritated. “Thank you Tigerfang for defending our clan; please step back now.” His lightning blue stared down the she-kit. “Who are you and what do you want? Speak!”

“I-I… I come with a warning,” she stammered, too afraid to move, not even to clean her muzzle.  _ She’s crying, _ Stonefur realized. “You HAVE to believe me!”

“Stormclan has patrolled its borders well for seasons upon seasons. Do you really think we need some kit telling us what to do?” Darkstar shook his head, exasperated at the drama. “We aren’t doing this. Get this cat out of camp and out of my territory.” 

Icicle squeaked as she was shoved away by some senior warriors. Tigerfang had a blank expression.

“What was that all about?” Stonefur murmured to no one in particular. The she-cat had clearly been anxious.

Tigerfang just shrugged. “I couldn’t care less.” The look in her green eyes said otherwise, making her brother wonder. Greyspot and Stonefur watched Icicle leave in silence.

“I’m going to make a nest,” Tigerfang muttered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Icicle does a big oof: the scene. Poor baby.


	39. Chapter 35

Icicle shivered in her makeshift nest that night, waiting for her mother to rip her to shreds.  _ I tried… I shouldn’t have tried! Since when was I any help? Tiger is always angry anyway. _

Instead of the highly anticipated thumps of Tigerfang’s giant paws, the blue-grey she-cat from earlier was sniffing around for her. “Go away,” she squeaked, not caring that she sounded pathetic. “Please?”

More pawsteps were heard. “Hey, I’m Stonefur and this is Greyspot. We’re not here to hurt you, unless you hurt us,” a tom meowed. Icicle’s mouth watered at the scent of prey in his jaws. “Can we come in?”

“Y-Yeah.” The two warriors padded into the bush warily. They certainly didn’t look as though they had any malicious intent, but Icicle was still wary. “What do you want?”

“Who are you?” Greyspot asked, flickering Stonefur’s shoulder. He dropped the mouse begrudgingly and Icicle immediately started chewing. “What’s your purpose? Please tell us.”

“I…”  _ Do I lie? What would Tiger do? _ “I gave you a warning.”

“Yes. You did. Now go on,” Greyspot meowed. It was clear she was trying to keep her annoyance from her voice. “Tell us what the threat actually is, so we can deal with it.”

“I-I can’t.”

“Why not? Don’t you want to help us?”

“I can’t do that either. Don’t want to, not allowed.”

Greyspot and Stonefur exchanged a glance. “Are there any other cats with you that could tell us?” the tom meowed. “There’s another nest in the corner.”

Icicle watched as he padded over to sniff it. She heard his gasp and turned to Greyspot with an expression full of emotions. Greyspot did the same.

“Kit, who are you to Tiger?” Greyspot asked calmly.

“She’s my mother.” Icicle flattened her ears. “Don’t hurt her.”

“We won’t, not unless she hurts us. I wanted to trust that cat,” Greyspot hissed. “How selfish of her to leave her daughter out here alone! You’re hardly the age of an apprentice! Size doesn’t count.”

“She’s doing her best,” Icicle muttered. “To destroy you from the inside. She’s always mad.”

Stonefur’s stunned expression rested on the young she-cat. “We’re kin then,” he stammered. “I’m Tiger’s brother.”

“And I’m related. Somehow.” Greyspot turned around to show a grey spot on her neck. Icicle remembered she had the same one. “Cool marking, right?”

“R-Right.”  _ Why aren’t they tearing me apart? Why are they being… Nice? _

It was even more daunting when Greyspot and Stonefur convinced her to come back to Stormclan’s camp with them. Icicle shrunk into the shadows of the entrance as the two warriors, who were supposedly her own kin, went to tell their leader the information they’d uncovered. 

Darkstar didn’t even think twice as he ordered Stonefur to go get Tigerfang. Stonefur’s expression was of sadness, similar to Icicle’s own.  _ He doesn’t want his sister to have to leave. _

“I don’t take rumors lightly,” Darkstar hissed when the black and brown tabby she-cat stood facing him. “Get out of my territory.”

The apprentices were watching from their den as Tigerfang turned her back on the clan. “Tigerfang!” Summerpaw called. The she-cat’s ear twitched. “Were you really planning to hurt us?”

Tigerfang said nothing in reply. When she reached her daughter, she lashed out at Icicle sitting in the shadows, and the smaller she-cat fell against the barrier with a thump. Blood poured from her muzzle from two diagonal scratches. “Ow!”

“Hey! Stop that!” Stonefur thrust himself against his much more muscular sister. “And stop being so… just… awful! I get that you’re in pain, I am too, but you can’t let grief consume you like this.”

Icicle watched as the two siblings faced each other. “Please don’t fight,” she whimpered. “Tiger, don’t fight anymore.”

“Icicle, do hold your tongue some more,” her mother mocked. “Your brother should’ve lived instead of you. Why don’t you obey my every word?”

“I was just trying to help…”

“Well, you didn’t. You never do. But that’s alright; I never needed you anyway. I’ve never needed anyone.” Tigerfang stalked out of Stormclan with her head and tail held high. 

Summerpaw scurried to Greyspot’s side. “I’m sorry! I brought her here. It’s my fault.”

“No, it isn’t. You couldn’t have known better,” Greyspot meowed, wrapping her tail around Summerpaw’s shoulders. “I figured you’d train with some other cat. I’m the one who needs to apologize.” Mentor and apprentice touched noses. “I’ll do better now.”

Icicle could feel the hostile glares of the Stormclan cats. When Greyspot and Stonefur reached out to comfort her, she ducked and raced out of camp. She wasn’t welcome here, and although she knew her mother wouldn’t welcome her either, she couldn’t stay with strangers she hardly knew.

~~~~~

Stonefur felt pride when Robinflight was made into a warrior alongside her sister Summerstorm and another apprentice, Cloudjumper. It had been a few moons since the unexpected incident with his sister and Stonefur still ached. He’d talked to Greyspot and Bluestream about it, but he just wished he could connect to Tigerfang out of all cats. And Icicle was nowhere to be found; Stonefur hoped she’d made it far away from her mother.

Summerstorm had taken Greyspot aside after the ceremony, and by the look on her face Stonefur knew what she was thinking. He padded over to join them.

“I’m afraid of what Tigerfang will do if she’s left around. I scented her just outside our border while patrolling the other day,” Summerstorm admitted. Stonefur thought of Icicle, anger flowing through his pelt. Yet there was also reluctance to chase his sister away, after how long they’d been apart. “We need to do something.”

“We will,” Greyspot promised. “If she comes back again, we’ll come up with a good plan.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Icicle got a muzzle scar, and in the shape of an x… oh no!


	40. Chapter 36

Greenleaf went on, possibly the longest he’d ever known. Stonefur was proud of his former apprentice when she and her mate Cloudjumper had their first litter, though he felt Bluestream’s sadness whenever she snuggled next to him at night. They’d been trying for kits of their own but hadn’t had any luck.

Stonefur wanted to adopt, but the issue with that was that every kit in Stormclan already had at least one happy parent. The only young cat he could think of outside the clan that needed a stable relationship was his niece. Bluestream was hesitant at first, understandably wary of Icicle, but she soon agreed.

The two ventured out one morning to find her. Luckily, Tiger wasn’t anywhere near her daughter when they’d found her hiding under a bush that evening. She looked miserable.

“Go away,” she sighed. “I’m gonna become one with all this dew and rain.”

“So that means you’ll join Stormclan? All the dew and rain was caused by an actual storm last night, you know,” Stonefur meowed. Bluestream nudged him, exasperated with his jokes. “Icicle, you look like you’re starving.”

“I’m not.” Her stomach rumbled otherwise. “Maybe a bit.”

_ My sister’s scent is nowhere near this area anymore, _ Stonefur thought.  _ She must’ve stayed away from her daughter. I can’t tell if that’s a good or bad thing; did she teach Icicle how to hunt…? It looks like she’s only had some luck. _

“Who’s this?” Icicle was peering at Bluestream with an anxious expression.

“I’m Bluestream, Stonefur’s mate,” she mewed, extending a paw. Icicle put hers in Bluestream’s hesitantly. “It’s nice to meet you.”

“Icicle, you’re a good cat,” Stonefur began.  _ Please, Starclan, if you’re out there still after everything, help me convince her to come with us so I can take her to safety. _ “And I care for you.”

“Tiger says she cares for me. Then she abandoned me. I thought I was doing the right thing; I wanted nothing more than to help!” Icicle leapt to her paws and lashed her tail. Bluestream backed away, but Stonefur didn’t allow himself to even flinch. “You’d be no different!”

“You don’t know that. Kin doesn’t decide kindness,” Stonefur explained. “I’m not my sister. In fact, I want nothing more than to get along with her either.”

Icicle dug her sharp claws into the ground, desperately holding back tears. Stonefur didn’t take his eyes off his niece.  _ I will save you. I couldn’t save Shadowstream or Hailstar or any cat of Streamclan that was lost that day, but I can save you. _

“Let it out,” Bluestrea murmured, just loud enough for them to hear. “Let the pain out.”

Icicle threw her head back in a scream. She spilled out everything: from her early kithood to the moment Tiger had set eyes on Stormclan territory. Stonefur’s heart broke for her, and he wept beside her, taking his turn to explain Streamclan to her and everything prior to it. Bluestream shed tears of her own as well, though Stonefur didn’t know what all of them were for.

“I’ll go with you,” Icicle whimpered in her uncle’s ear. “I’m so scared.”

“I know,” Stonefur murmured. “I know.”

~~~~~

Icicle became Iciclepaw, Stonefur’s new apprentice. Gradually the clan began to warm up to her, but she overheard Darkstar telling her uncle to keep a close eye on her.

She was tagging along with Stonefur on a hunting patrol with Robinflight and Cloudjumper. Summerstorm awkwardly avoided any eye contact with Iciclepaw, and she understood why.

Cloudjumper was a sweet tom and was meowing cute things to his mate about their kits back in the nursery. “It’s good to stretch my legs,” Robinflight mewed. Summerstorm nudged her sister’s shoulder affectionately. “It’s so sunny and bright today! Nothing could go wrong.”

The patrol split up near a beech tree. Stonefur took his apprentice aside to learn some new hunting techniques Tiger had never taught her. They both jumped when they heard a screech.

“Robinflight!” Stonefur roared when they found her dangling from a tree branch. “It’ll be ok-YOU!”

Tigerfang was licking her lips eagerly as Robinflight swung to-and-fro. “I can’t get down!” she caterwauled. “Tiger spooked me!”

_ No! Robinflight never did anything to you!  _ “Please stop!” Iciclepaw called. “Please!”

Stonefur was making his way towards his sister to confront her when Cloudjumper raced past him and lunged towards the huge she-cat, claws outstretched. Tigerfang met him in mid-air and sank her teeth into his throat with ease.

“NO!” Robinflight screamed as Tigerfang swung her mate into the tree trunk. The world shook as she fell, and Summerstorm leaped out of nowhere, softening her fall. But the damage left them both winded, and Robinflight fainted.

Summerstorm was trying to nudge her littermate away when Tigerfang thrust her aside and started clawing Robinflight mercilessly. Iciclepaw could only stare in horror as Summerstorm clumsily confronted Tigerfang and Stonefur tore open one of her ears.

“Do you know what this is for?!” Tigerfang snarled, ducking away from Stonefur’s next blow. She spotted her daughter cowardly crouching across the forest clearing and began racing towards her. Iciclepaw screamed.

“Traitor to our noble cause,” she hissed, pinning her kit down. “We were going to do this for your father and the rest of our clan-a little clan, yes, but a noble one all the same that didn’t deserve its fate. This land belongs to the remains of that clan-ME!”

“There’s no noble cause you’d ever give a claw for!” her brother hissed back, thrusting her aside. The two siblings wrestled. Summerstorm was busy licking her sister’s wounds, and desperately trying to help Cloudjumper at the same moment. Iciclepaw began screaming again, this time for help. She prayed she wasn’t imagining the thump of paws in the distance. “You’ve never cared about any cats who tried to help you. I doubt you ever truly loved whatever cats you stayed with after you left me and our sister.”

“Our sister is dead, no thanks to you or Greyspot,” Tigerfang hissed. “And the clan I was with understood me more than any other. More than a soft furball like you ever did.”


	41. Chapter 37

Tigerfang was finally chased away when other Stormclan warriors came into the scene. Rainfern, the clan’s senior medicine cat, quickly got to work alongside another medic, Nightgaze.

Both Robinflight’s and Cloudjumper’s wounds were deep, and they would be stuck in the medicine den for a long time. While Cloudjumper’s wound had been quickly patched and was luckily not as deep as Rainfern had feared, Robinflight was in critical condition. Guilt constantly slashed Iciclepaw into bits. She touched her scarred muzzle gingerly.

“Iciclepaw,” she heard her mentor meow. She turned her head to see Stonefur in the light of the den entrance. “Let’s go outside.”

“Okay.” She cast one last glance at the two cats sleeping and then followed her uncle through the camps. Some cats cast her gazes of pity; others looked as if they wanted to claw her alive. Iciclepaw couldn’t help but feel how unnecessary this had been.

“If I’d said something more,” she blurted out. Stonefur turned to look at her in the grass. “If I’d told her this was a bad idea…”

“You couldn’t have stopped her,” the black tom argued. “My sister was always a determined cat.”

She knew he was right, but still, she couldn’t help but cry. Stonefur rested his tail around her shoulders. It was clear he didn’t know what to do either.

“I love Mama, but what she’s done is just…”

“I know,” he answered. “I feel the same way.”

They stood there in silence for a while, listening to the breeze. “Hey,” he meowed. “I have an idea. If we can prove you’re a really good hunter and fighter soon, Darkstar might make you a warrior early.”

“How would that help anything?”

“You can prove to Tigerfang that you really want to be a warrior.” Stonefur was lashing his tail excitedly. “Then she’ll see how independent you are. Not only that, but you’ll be the enemy. Would she really attack the clan that her daughter is in?”

“Yes,” Iciclepaw blurted. “Of course she would attack. You know her.”

“I know you want to believe there’s some good in her, Stonefur,” Greyspot meowed as she joined them. She dropped a bird at their paws. “But I don’t think she’ll be showing off that supposed goodness anytime soon. You saw that earlier. He’s right that you need to become a warrior though.” The blue-grey she-cat licked the younger cat’s ears affectionately. “Prove to her everything you’ve ever wanted to prove.”

Iciclepaw did so. She trained hard over the next moon, and poor Stonefur looked as if he were about to collapse at the end of the training sessions he decided himself. She was always cheered on by the other warriors, even some of those who disliked her from the start.

When she received her warrior name, Iciclefur couldn’t help but feel as though she were being watched. Stonefur and Bluestream were a prouder pair of parents than her mother had ever been. 

~~~~~

“I’ve had enough,” Summerstorm meowed one evening. The sunset had turned the sea behind them blood-red as apprentice and mentor ate together peacefully on the cliff overlooking the drowning sun. “It’s time to end this once and for all.”

Greyspot tore into her bird. “I know the guilt you must be feeling, but remember it wasn’t your fault she came. And I agree with you. Your sister did not deserve what happened yesterday. Let’s end this.”

That night, the two she-cats easily convinced Bluestream and Stonefur to come along. Iciclefur was more hesitant but agreed. Greyspot felt horrible for her, placing a paw on her heart.  _ I hope I never have to confront my own mother like this, whoever and wherever she is. _

Knowing Tigerfang liked to attack cats when they were alone, they split up to cover more ground.  _ How did she sneak past patrols to get into our territory? _ Greyspot had wondered as she placed her paws on the other side.  _ The land is huge, but so is the number of cats we have. _

Greyspot ended up being the unlucky one. Tigerfang and another cat she didn’t recognize dove straight for her. The unfamiliar tom was a yellow tabby with deep red splotches, looking almost as if he were covered in blood. His amber eyes were like fire.

_ Bloodstains… Aquafrost has some. _ Greyspot narrowly avoided his sharp claws, but Tigerfang’s teeth chomped down on the back of her neck. Before she could sink her teeth in too far, Summerstorm tackled her aside. “I won’t let you injure another cat I love!”

_ Thank Starclan you forgave me for being such a lousy mentor, _ she thought as Bluestream came to assist. Iciclefur scrambled to Greyspot’s side.

“You’re bleeding! On your grey spot,” she meowed hurriedly.

“Not badly. Go fight and show her who’s in control of you,” Greyspot hissed. “Get that tom!”

Iciclefur turned towards the yellow cat, but Stonefur already had him taken care of. Greyspot felt pride in her as Icicle stomped up to where Summerstorm and Bluestream had Tigerfang cornered against a tree. “Let me speak to her quickly.”

“Then do it quickly. We can’t hold her down forever,” Summerstorm snapped.

“T-Tiger,” she began. “Tiger.”

“What? Make it quick,” she hissed.

“When I was born, y-you loved me so much,” Iciclefur meowed. “And my brother, Toadkit.”

“Don’t say his name.”

“I thought you’d insist you still love me.”

“SHUT UP.”

Iciclefur flattened her ears. “I can’t. Not anymore.”

“What happened to Toadkit?” The stranger spoke for the first time. “Tigerfang, what happened to your son? Why is your daughter attacking you?”

“He died while I was trying to reach him. When the foxes came…” Greyspot’s ears perked. “Frogleap died to save him, but a younger fox came and ate my baby.”

“Frogleap was a noble cat. You know he wouldn’t want you doing this, friend.”

“I know that. Don’t take me for a fool, Lionclaw. And don’t you either.” Tigerfang’s green gaze striked Iciclefur; Greyspot had never heard Tigerfang so calm and yet so furious. “I lost my entire family to those same foxes-my own father and my mother. Others too. Greyspot, this pathetic furball right here, helped Stonefur and I when we were younger. I didn’t ask for it! You made me look weak.”

“You were only a few moons old! What else could I do?”

“You could’ve prevented Shadow’s death! My littermate!”

“Shadowstream died saving kits, just as your mate did,” Stonefur hissed. Lionclaw, Tigerfang’s friend, had stopped fighting and now stood beside him peacefully. He seemed more surprised than anything. “Tiger, please take a deep breath and realize what you’re doing. Greyspot and I have been hurt so much by foxes; maybe the same ones as you. Attacking others and letting out your rage that way won’t make you feel any better. More hurt can’t extinguish existing hurt.”

Tigerfang’s teeth gleamed brightly despite the dark as she bit her lip. Iciclefur stepped away and turned her back on her mother. Greyspot muttered a thank you as her wounds were licked.

“Tigerfang, I thought we were going to go save your daughter from evil cats. But these cats aren’t evil, and she wants to stay with them.” Lionclaw padded over and gently wrapped his tail around her face, cupping her fury. “Let’s leave these cats be and make a new life for ourselves. Maybe we can find some of our old clanmates together.”

Tigerfang looked as if she were seriously contemplating it. As she thrust herself up, Summerstorm and Bluestream were ready. Each seized their chance and clawed one green eye. Tigerfang fell back with a roar like the mighty cat she was named after.

“I regret ever knowing any side of you,” Summerstorm hissed, trying not to be disgusting by the fluids pouring out of Tigerfang’s head. Bluestream had closed her eyes and turned away, crying. Stonefur rushed to her side. “Get out of here.”

Greyspot and Iciclefur watched in silence as Summerstorm nudged Tigerfang to her paws. “A blind cat once told me,” Greyspot meowed, “that you should use your other senses. Your hearing still reaches far, and you feel the vibrations of your surroundings.”

“I’ve never needed your help,” the she-cat snarled. “And I never will.”

“Then this is goodbye.”

Iciclefur looked at her mother silently, before meowing, “I think you got what you deserve. Or maybe you didn’t. I don’t know anymore. And I don’t know you.”

“Er… Don’t worry, everyone,” Lionclaw meowed, awkwardly dipping his head to all. He gave a brief nod to Iciclefur. “I’ll take care of her.”

With that, he nudged Tigerfang away and the two cats were gone. 

“Goodbye, sister,” Stonefur murmured. Bluestream stifled a sob. “It’s over.”

Greyspot licked Iciclefur’s ears. “It’s over.”

“It’s over,” she repeated.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's not over. I have more chapters and another allegiance page with missing information to do. Argh.


	42. Chapter 38

The next day, Stonefur and Iciclefur visited Greyspot first thing in the medicine den. “I wonder if those foxes were the same ones who drove Streamclan to pieces,” was all she said before nodding to Rainfern’s other patients.

The medicine cats were out for their morning herb gathering, leaving them all in peace. Cloudjumper was awake, and much to Iciclefur’s surprise, he was happy to see her. “Summerstorm told us everything just earlier,” he mewed hoarsely. “You are a brave cat.”

“I don’t deserve your praise. Not after…” Iciclefur couldn’t help but weep at the sight of Robinflight. The pretty she-cat wasn’t doing nearly as well as her mate. “What can I do?”

“You’ve done what you needed to.”

“But that doesn’t mean I’m happy.” She felt Stonefur’s tail rest on her shoulders and Greyspot’s quiet and relaxed yet determined gaze from behind. “What can I do for you both?”

Cloudjumper scratched his head, pondering. “You could help us with our kits. They don’t need much milk anymore,” he meowed. “I saw them this morning. Summerstorm brought them to snuggle with us for a while.” He chuckled, adding, “Rainfern surprisingly allowed it.”

Iciclefur nodded vigorously. “I’ll do that. I’ll do anything.”

“Thank you,” Cloudjumper mewed softly.

~~~~~

Iciclefur was going to stay for a while and grief with the injured warriors when Stonefur stepped into the clan clearing. Bluestream was waiting for him just outside of camp, and together they padded into the hunting grounds to make sure Tigerfang was gone for good.

“I think I’ll always grief,” he murmured as they reached the top of a hill. The sun sent golden rays of warmth and goodness. In the far distance, he could see his sister and her companion crossing over a river. For the first time in her life, she was allowing another cat to support her. “I miss her. I can’t believe she hurt my apprentices. I miss our other sister. I miss my clan.”

“She’s finally getting the help she needs. And you already have yours,” Bluestream mewed, nuzzling his ear. They could faintly make out Tigerfang was leaning against Lionclaw’s side. “And we will always be there for Iciclefur too. I’ll do my best to heal this broken family.”

“What’s your kin like? You never told me.”

“Oh,” Bluestream laughed. “You know my parents and littermates. I’m a Stormclan cat like any other, and so are they. The kindest cats in the world.” She blinked at him softly. “I don’t fully understand all of your pain, but you know how much of your burden I’ve been carrying with you from day one. I love you, Stonefur.”

“I love you too, Bluestream.” Together, twinning their tails, they looked out over the horizon. Eventually, Iciclefur squeezed her way in between them.


	43. Chapter 39

Greyspot had let Cloudjumper lean against her as he grieved for the dying Robinflight in the medicine den. The whole of Stormclan mourned with them. 

Greyspot glanced around at all the warriors that morning. The bite had long healed, and she needed to run, needed to breathe fresh air and scents. She silently excused herself after the elders left camp to bury the queen.

She knew where her paws were taking her the moment she began racing through the tall grass, enjoying the calm greenleaf day.  _ In a moon or two, it’ll begin to get cold. I wonder how cold though, since Stormclan is next to a sun-drown-place that gives lots of warmth. _

_ Am I leaving Stormclan? _ She skidded to a halt at the border. She knew she wouldn’t be ambushed due to Tigerfang’s departure, but still, she felt an odd call in her to run and run forever.  _ I’ve grown to love this place, but what’s still out there? How are all the cats that didn’t come with me to Stormclan? _

She decided she would find somewhere outside the territory to relax and let her grief spill out. After walking through the woods and taking in the familiar sights of marshy land, she hooked her claws into a willow tree and curled up. She was content with dozing when she heard familiar pawsteps. 

_ Who followed me out here? I want some me time after everything, _ Greyspot huffed. She peered through the leaves. “HEY!”

The amber eyes of the brown and white tabby widened as the blue-grey she-cat jumped down next to her. “HEY! Where have ye been?! My brother has been worrying his pelt off because of you.”

“Aquafrost has always done that. Where have YOU been? I haven’t seen you since you left Streamclan!” 

The former deputy laughed. “I’m glad you remember me! It’s great to see you again, Rainwish. I’ve been doing my own thing. I finally had the chance to see an old clan again, but then Aquafrost was all like, hey, let’s do another clan, because we received news our other brother is preparing to attack. Oh! And my name isn’t Mapleshine anymore; it’s Eaglesong.”

“Woah! Slow down,” the other she-cat laughed. “It’s good to see you too.”

“You bet it is! I have so much to share with you.” She nudged the cat she knew as Rainwish with her shoulder. “Where to start?”

“Tell me about this new clan. Is it already on the brink of disaster? I’m not joining if he decides to straight up leave again randomly.” 

“No, Aquafrost promised us he’d be more organized this time. He thinks Starclan wants us all where we are now. He named it Thornclan, and made the six units. Aurora, Nettle, River, Pine, Stream, and Rose. Each one does different duties for the clan as a whole; I lead the River Unit. He leads Aurora.”

“I see,” Rainwish mewed, watching a leaf fall onto the ground beside them. “So which one do I join? Do I get to choose?”

“Of course you do, but…” Eaglesong tapped her paws on the ground, creating suspense. “We need a leader for the Rose Unit, and Aquafrost wants you for the job.”

Ice-blue eyes narrowed. “That’s kind of him, but are you sure your Auroraclan Ancestors approve of all this? If he’s taken away from me again, I vow I’ll tear up the whole forest searching for him until he’s mine for good.”

“If you’re that determined that can find him again, I think you’d make a great Rose leader,” Eaglesong purred. “The Rose Unit is all about being clever and cunning, spying on other cats… whether they be an enemy or a friend. Aquafrost is a hard cat to track down, considering that our brother Darkstar hasn’t found us yet. If you can find and spy on him, you can find and spy on anyone. You’re intelligent in that way and he knows it.” The tabby nudged her again. “If you’d like to come with me, I can take you to him. He’s preparing a place for you. He wants you by his side as we confront Darkstar and finish this fight once and for all.”

Rainwish reminded herself that Darkstar of whatever clan Eaglesong spoke of was not the same as Darkstar of Stormclan.  _ I’ve been in Stormclan for most of greenleaf now; have I repaid my debt, at least to some degree? _

_ I missed you, _ she thought as she gazed at her friend.  _ And I miss Aquafrost.  _ She turned her head to glance back at the land behind her. She would not forget this generous clan, nor the clan prior.  _ The enemy that plagued us for a while is gone now. Maybe my work in Stormclan is done. Although I don’t want to leave Summerstorm or Stonefur right after Robinflight’s death…  _

“It’s time to give my heart to him,” Rainwish meowed. “In a few days, that is.”

~~~~~

Stonefur stood at the edge of the ocean, on his favorite cliff overlooking whatever was beyond the water. Whatever was out there, he knew he did not need it, as he was at last at somewhat of a peace. The aching loss of his apprentice Robinflight was still there, sharp and fresh, but he knew he could continue on with her and others dear to him that he’d lost safely stored in his heart.

“Stone,” meowed a quiet voice behind him. Greyspot was gazing at the daybreak ahead of them. “I can’t stay here.”

The black and grey tom said nothing, instead resting his tail on her back. They sat in silence for a while, doing nothing more than enjoying each other’s company. Iciclefur soon joined them.

“I know,” she mewed before Greyspot could speak. “It’s okay. I sensed you were unhappy, and I appreciate you staying to watch me become a warrior. Hey, maybe the life of a rogue and loner will make you happier than it ever made me.”

“You’re both free to come with me,” the blue-grey she-cat meowed. “But I can’t ask that of you, not after all you’ve been through. You’re satisfied here. Stay, is all I ask.”

The two cats exchanged a glance. “We will,” Stonefur promised, his voice cracking a bit. He’d always seen her as a beloved parental figure, and to Iciclefur, she was one as well. “But we’ll miss you so much. Please remember us.”

“I will. I’ll never forget,” Greyspot promised, touching muzzles with each of them. “I’ll tell our tale to my kits one day. And I’m changing my name back to Rainwish.”

Stonefur tilted his head. He’d never met Aquafrost, the tom who she had been in love with last time he checked, but if she was moving to a nursery soon it would surely be because of him. He’d heard a lot about him and Stonefur hoped Aquafrost would treat his foster mother well. “You’re already a brilliant mother.”

Rainwish purred a thank you.

“I’d better go,” she meowed. “I have a long journey ahead of me; I’ll be traveling past Streamclan’s old territory.”

“I’d love to learn more about whether you’ll end up,” Iciclefur mewed, clearly trying to hold back her tears. “But maybe another time.”

Rainwish nodded. “Another time. Goodbye, Iciclefur.” She rested her head against the other she-cat’s. “And goodbye, Stonefur.”

Stonefur relished the embrace of the cat he knew was kin his too.  _ One day, I bet we’ll know how exactly we’re family. Not today, though. It’s never mattered whether we’re kin or not anyway. _ Rainwish was climbing down the rocky ledges in the cliff to get one last touch of sand through her paws. Iciclefur was burying her face in her uncle’s shoulder, drenching him with her sobs. Stonefur knew he’d never see Greyspot again.  _ All that matters is the bonds we’ve built, and will always have despite time and distance. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did some digging through that old Stormclan blog and found that Robinflight survived the fall, and then had another litter of kits, but she died soon after. I’d really like to find her again one day just to clear the confusion around her end, oof. Well, Stormclan is complete! On to Thornclan we go!


	44. ThornClan Allegiances

**ThornClan**

**Leade** **r:** Aquafrost \- big white tom whose fur is stained with ash, mud, and blood. He has many battle scars and has blind, ice-blue eyes with misty pupils (Aurora Unit).

**Deputy** **:** Dragonheart \- big black muscular tom with a white underbelly, amber eyes, and many scars (Nettle Unit).

**Medicine Cat** **:** Ivyleaf \- white she-cat with grey splotches and green eyes (Stream Unit).

**Unit Leaders:**

Aurora \-  Aquafrost

  * Description: Battle Planners, Clever & Noble.



Nettle \-  Dragonheart

  * Description: Fighters, Fierce & Bold.



River \-  Eaglesong

  * Description: Fishers, Swimmers & Snatchers.



Pine \-  Ebonyfrost

  * Description: Hunters, Tree Climbers & Catchers.



Stream \-  Ivyleaf

  * Description: Healers, Guards & Defense.



Rose \-  Rainwish

  * Description: Spies, Cunning & Smart.



  
  


**Warriors** **:**

Eaglesong \- long-legged light brown she-cat with ivory tabby stripes and amber-orange eyes (River Unit).

Rockbreeze \- grey tabby she-cat with white splotches and blue eyes (Rose Unit).

Ebonyfrost \- black she-cat with a dark brown underbelly and white spots (Pine Unit).

Rainwish \- dark blue-grey she-cat with ice-blue eyes (Rose Unit).

Tigerflame \- brown tabby tom with ginger stripes and a ginger marking on his muzzle (Pine Unit).

Echoshadow \- half black and half grey she-cat (Nettle Unit).

Shimmermist \- dark brown she-cat with light grey spots (Nettle Unit).

Talonclaw \- light brown tom with white paws (Rose Unit).

Hopeshine \- dark tabby brown she-cat (Rose Unit).

Whiteflower \- white she-cat (Rose Unit).

Mistpelt \- white she-cat with blue eyes and a black underbelly and paws (Stream Unit). 

Inktail \- white she-cat with a black tail-tip and blue eyes (Rose Unit).

(+many more)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, I had to make up descriptions for minor background characters Tigerflame, Echoshadow, Shimmermist, Talonclaw, and Hopeshine. Their units are correct though. Sadly in Rain's Wish not much will actually be shown when it comes to the units, but never fear, a sequel will come eventually called Eagle's Shine! When that is... neither Eagleshine nor I have any idea. Be patient, and we shall see what occurs in our roleplay. If you'd like to join us I'll leave links in End notes. Enjoy Thornclan, even though it's brief!


	45. Chapter 40

Eaglesong was alone when Rainwish reunited with her friend near a patch of thistles a decent distance from Stormclan territory. “Thank StarClan you came. Aquafrost headed home earlier because of trouble on one of our borders.” Her striped tail slashed the grass. “The final fight is so soon… I fear for the future of our clan. But I’m glad yer here. You at least keep every cat calm. Even me, and that’s tough to do.”

“Come on. Let’s get you home.”

~~~~~

It took them ages to reach Thornclan. It was much farther away than Streamclan had previously been, and Rainwish had taken Eaglesong to grieve for a day at the former camp. When they finally arrived at the barrier of thorns deep in a forest with much more birches and a lot more Rockbreeze.

The grey tabby and white she-cat was an even angrier furball when Rainwish greeted her at the camp entrance. “You’re here too?”

“AAAAAAAAA,” Rockbreeze screamed, thrusting her muzzle against Rainwish’s. It took the blue-grey she-cat a moment to realize the taller she-cat was simply excited and not going to attack her. “HI.”

“Hi…?”  _ I thought you didn’t like me last time we met? I can’t really tell, _ she thought, tilting her head. “How are you?”

“Ignore her. Rockbreeze has been having a moment,” Eaglesong mewed. “She’s happy that she doesn’t have to spy on my brother anymore. The other one,” she added when Rockbreeze gave her a look. “Not that she doesn’t spy on Aquafrost and meddles with his business either.”

Aquafrost was resting in the sunshine directly across the camp from the entrance. Rainwish resisted the urge to bound over to him and tackle him affectionately. She padded towards him casually and was not going to make herself look like a fool for him under the gazes of unfamiliar cats.

“Hey,” she whispered in his ear, causing him to jerk his head up in surprise.  _ Woah, I’m sneaky.  _ “I finally managed to sneak up on you.”

Aquafrost blinked in her direction sleepily. “Fàilte gu dachaigh. Let’s do your ceremony.”

The great tom nuzzled her lovingly before beckoning her to a rock in the center of the clearing. Cats began to quickly gather around.

“Cats of Thornclan,” their leader meowed. “If you haven’t met her already, one of the cats I trust most, Rainwish, has decided to join Thornclan. I am overjoyed and honored to have her with us.”

Familiar and unfamiliar cheers filled the air. Rainwish glanced around the clearing and saw faces she recognized and others she did not. “Rainwish! Rainwish!”

“Thank you all,” she replied, shuffling her paws in the grass. “It’s an honor to be here.”

Aquafrost bounded down from the rock and faced her. “You have been chosen to lead the Rose Unit, the cleverest warriors who spy on our enemies and retrieve the necessary information for us to succeed in the great battle to come. Do you promise to uphold the lives of Thornclan above your own, and are you willing to take on such an important responsibility?”

She nodded. “I do.”  _ Hopefully, this time leading, things won’t go down in flames. _

~~~~~

“So is your name Aquastar now? Everyone here has called you Aquafrost,” Rainwish meowed. The big tom was showing her around their new territory, which was many forests away from Streamclan and especially Stormclan. She wondered where their enemy lurked; there was still so much she didn’t know yet. But she was eager to learn.

“I’m keeping it as Aquafrost,” he replied. “I don’t want to appear super powerful. Just as good as any other cat.”

Rainwish glanced up at the canopy. She thought she saw Ebonyfrost, the leader of the Pine Unit, whisking by as she chased a squirrel high, high above them.  _ I’m too scared of falling to climb that high.  _ “Being humble won’t save you from Darkstar, considering all the things I’ve heard about him.”

Aquafrost shrugged. “I dinnae think I’ll need more than one life to end him. Not that I want to, ye ken. Once it’s over, it’s over, and I won’t have to worry about any more of my close kin and friends dying unnecessary deaths.”

“Do you think killing him will really end all of your troubles? There are still plenty of other wicked cats in the world, you know.”

Aquafrost licked her ears. “I know. But he’s uniting every one of them according to our sources. The Rose Unit is really excited to have you as leader,” he purred. “I know you’ve got what it takes for this. You’ve seen first-paw what the wrong thing to do is; now you can do better.” He leaned down and whispered in her ear, “Just don’t send yourself away as the one spying. I don’t want you hurt.”

“I’m glad they’re excited. Maybe cats will listen to me this time,” she huffed. “I feel like I belong in a clan more than I ever did alone. That’s why I put up with so much nonsense from other cats.” She nudged him affectionately. “Cats like you.”

“Hmm? Me?”

“Yes, you,” she laughed, tackling him. The two rolled around in the bushes together, having a play fight. “No one else but you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Fàilte gu dachaigh" means welcome home in Scottish Gaelic-thank you Eagleshine :)


	46. Chapter 41

“Hi! I meant to talk to you after the ceremony, but Aquafrost wanted to show me around,” Rainwish meowed the next day as she entered the medicine den. “Are you well?”

“Oh! Rainwish!” The white and grey spotted she-cat stuck her head out from a wad of borage. “I was hoping I’d see you again!”

“It’s good to see you too, Leaftail,” the blue-grey she-cat purred. “How… is everything?”

“I’m okay. My name is Ivyleaf now. Oh Rainwish, I’m so sorry for what happened in Streamclan. It wasn’t your fault. And Ravenwing. I don’t understand why Aquafrost is letting her stay here.”

“Ravenwing’s here?! Ivyleaf, who attacked you that night?” She pointed to the scars on the medicine cat’s back.

“Oh, it wasn’t Ravenwing. It was Blazestar. I was going to collect a flower that blooms best at night, and…” The she-cat’s ears drooped. “She came out of nowhere and attacked me, smelling so much like the forest around us. She must’ve not wanted to be discovered as she chased me away. I ran and eventually found Aquafrost again after you were looking for a moon pool.”

“I remember you said something about a prophecy. Rain and raven’s wing?”

“Yes. I think that omen meant you both would either help Streamclan to rise or destroy it. And we know the ending to that. How many Streamclan cats are still alive?”

“Some. It’s okay, though. Those that are still around are safe in another clan, I promise.” Rainwish thought of Stonefur, wondering how he was doing without her. _He’s a strong cat. He won’t let grief over Robinflight’s death or Tigerfang’s fury take over him. Not even those pesky foxes could destroy him._ “I didn’t bring anyone with me, because they deserve peace after everything.”

Ivyleaf nodded. “You deserve peace too, ye ken. You’re still very special, prophecy or no prophecy. Please don’t forget that.”

“Don’t you forget that about yourself either. Thornclan needs you,” Rainwish mewed. “And I don’t think we’ll ever see Blazestar again. You’re safe here. Run to me next time, okay? I now have the chance to learn how to help and lead better.”

She nodded. “Pinestar was always a brilliant mentor to you. Go on out there and do your best for our clan; the Rose Unit needs you and the Stream Unit needs me.”

Rainwish dipped her head in acknowledgement. The name of Ivyleaf’s unit of healing and defense sent a pang of sadness through her chest, and for a moment they hung their heads in grief. “I tried to help her…” Ivyleaf whispered. “But Blazekit was such an angry kit, she wouldn’t even let me wrap my tail around her and cuddle her. I hope she’s not hurting any more cats, wherever she is.”

“I don’t like wishing harm on another cat, but maybe those foxes got her,” Rainwish meowed. “She really, REALLY liked those foxes.”

They chatted for a while longer, catching each other up on their lives. Rainwish had the sudden feeling of being watched, and she slowly turned her head around to find a pair of bright yellow eyes peering through a small gap in the den walls. “I’d better fix that for ya.”

Ivyleaf raised an eyebrow as Rainwish took some spare leaves without any purpose and gathered them in a small pile on the floor. They both heard a gasp of surprise when Rainwish slapped it onto the hole in the wall. “Fixed.”

“How did you notice her? Aquafrost was right; you’re really good at detecting danger,” Ivyleaf mused as they heard Ravenwing scramble away. “I’ll have to check for more holes in the den. Thank you, Rainwish.”

“Sure. I’ll talk to our leader about this. I’m a nice cat, but not to those who tried to burn me alive,” she huffed.

~~~~~

“I know you don’t like her, but she still can be useful. She’s a hard working cat,” Aquafrost meowed when Rainwish had stomped into his den, demanding an explanation. “Give her another chance.”

“She tried to kill me! I was forced to flee my clan because of her! How do you know she’s changed?!” The blue-grey she-cat arched her back in fury. “She better not be in MY unit!”

“She hasn’t decided on her unit yet. She got here not long before you did.” The big tom flickered his tail, tapping her paw. “We need as many warriors as we can to prepare for the fight ahead. I’m sorry I upset you.”

“Why does everything have to end in a fight?” Rainwish spat. Aquafrost didn’t flinch as her saliva landed on the top of his head. “All clan cats do is fight. Argue and fight, unnecessary death. At least when I lived alone, I didn’t have to claw cats I knew!”

Aquafrost had a pondering expression on his face. “All you do is think. Maybe you should think from another cat’s point of view for once!” She turned her back on him and began padding away.

“Rainwish,” he mewed. “If you don’t think I care about you and the rest of the cats we know, I wouldn’t be back to lead them. I’ve had eyes on her ever since she came to Thornclan. You could always have a member of the Rose Unit spying on her now. If she tries to hurt you again…” She turned her head to see the tom sliding his claws into the moss of his nest. _It’s not hard to guess what a large, muscular tom like him could do. Blindness never weakened him._ “She’ll receive the same punishment as my brother.”


	47. Chapter 42

The Rose Unit consisted of Rockbreeze and other cats Rainwish had never met before. “Thank you for introducing me to everyone,” she meowed to the grey tabby later that day. “I’ll do my best for y’all.”

“Of course! I thought you were really were a tiny blue-grey furball of stupid when I first met you, but you’re actually pretty neat and permanently tiny!”

 _I’m an average sized adult cat… maybe a tad shorter._ “Thanks? You’ve always spooked me a bit yourself.”

“Well, I dinnae intend to be any less chaotic or loud in the future. Haha!” The group of warriors bounded back towards camp that evening, or to hunt by themselves. “Hey, Rainwish,” Rockbreeze mewed when they chose a mouse to share. “I’ve been meaning to ask ye something.”

“What’s up?”

Rockbreeze angled her ears to where Aquafrost was speaking to some of the members of his unit, Aurora. She raised her voice a little, although Rainwish was sure he could already hear them. “When are you having kits?”

“I-What?” Rainwish sputtered. Curious heads turned in her direction.

“You two have been so close for a long time,” Rockbreeze purred. “And you’re a little plump.”

“That doesn’t mean-We aren’t official-” The blue-grey she-cat covered her blushing with her paws. “We aren’t mates!”

She didn’t dare look over at Aquafrost, who she was sure felt as awkward as she did. Rockbreeze just chuckled.

“I know you’re pregnant,” she whispered in Rainwish’s ear. “I always know when a queen is. I always watch out for it. Always.”

“This is my mouse,” Rainwish huffed, snatching their dinner away. “I’m never sharing tongues with you again. Goodnight.”

“Aw, mousedung,” Rockbreeze sighed as Rainwish ran through the camp exit. She wrinkled her muzzle. “You’ll miss out on my extensive list of evidence that suggests otherwise!”

~~~~~

Rainwish refused to return to camp that night until most cats were asleep. She heard Aquafrost following her long before she saw him.

“Rainwish?”

“Yes?” She scrambled down the tree she was resting on to greet him. “What is it?”

“I know you aren’t having kits,” he began, shuffling his giant paws awkwardly. “Did I tell you what happened to my niece?”

“No. Tell me.” She settled down beside him. “Or else I’ll sneeze and suddenly we will have a son in front of us.”

He laughed, a sound Rainwish would never become tired of. “I was already preparing myself for that revelation.”

“Rockbreeze was born to my sister, Pinefall. She was a brilliant young warrior, but she made a mistake.” Aquafrost breathed a heavy sigh. “She’s not going to appreciate me telling you this at all, but I ken how curious ye are, and I’ve already spoken…”

“There was a young tom, Windtalon, that she was madly in love with. Not long after her warrior ceremony, she began putting on a suspicious amount of weight. She thought she was just fat, and I had my own litter of kits to worry about at the time. So did Eaglesong.” His cloudy eyes filled with tears. “One day, on patrol with her mate, she went into labor and didn’t even know she was expecting. The kits didn’t survive.”

“That’s horrible,” Rainwish whispered.

“Our medicine cat was horrible. Whenever Rockbreeze was in pain, she didn’t receive much attention. If only I’d used the sight I still had, even if it was fading…”

“So now she watches out for every she-cat who thinks has the possibility of having kits?”

Aquafrost nodded. “That’s right. She wasn’t just teasing you; she was warning you.” He shook his head sadly. “She’s been through so much and more. I love her dearly, but I dinnae ken if I can ever heal her. That is, if any cat can.” 

“I can’t say I understand her sorrow, but if she needs me, I’ll be here.” Rainwish glanced down at her stomach. _Am I really fat?_ Aquafrost sensed her gesture and gave her a lick where future kits would be nourished. “Aquafrost.”

“Hmm?”

“Aren’t you going to ask the question? Rockbreeze is right; we’ve known each other for many seasons now.”

“I… Rainwish, I would’ve asked you to be my mate a long time ago, but you already know about my past… Do you really want me?”

His voice was filled with more longing than she’d ever heard before. “I do. I always have. You gave me a place to call home and even a name, when prior to that I had nothing.” She touched her muzzle to his. “Nothing at all.”

There was no need to ask if she wanted him, too. His body shook as he embraced her, finally making her his own. “Will you be my mate, Rainwish?”

“Yes,” she whispered as he nudged her into the privacy of shadows. “If you’ll be mine.”

Aquafrost, beckoning with his tail, led her through the trees much longer than she’d anticipated. She was about to tackle him and demand when they emerged in a small field of roses, just beyond the territory he’d shown her before. She gasped in awe at the beauty of the white petals. “Here.”

“The thorns will scratch us if we get too rowdy…”

“Every rose has its thorns, a price to pay for love. One cannae exist without the other. I know you do,” he mewed softly. “I have so many thorns you’re going to have to handle if you really want to pick me, Rainwish.”

“Aquafrost,” she mewed, leaning against his side. “I left the safety of the sea for you, even though I already knew what it was like when the current of endearment you created overflowed. I’m ready to embrace you, with every thorn of my own.”

The tom let out a quiet sigh as she began washing a small bloodstain on his shoulder. They curled up together in the petals, the stars shining above, the only other witnesses of their intimacy.

“For Starclan’s sake, Aquafrost,” Rainwish grunted. “Just hurry up and make love with me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can't have a shipping fanfiction from me without THAT kind of implied scene occurring towards the end.


	48. Chapter 43

Aquafrost, Dragonheart, Eaglesong, Ebonyfrost, Ivyleaf, and Rainwish were gathered together in Aquafrost’s leader den. Aquafrost had called them forward to explain his plans for their immediate future.

“We are ready for battle, Father,” Dragonheart meowed.

“And Ebonyfrost and I have stocked up our prey stores,” Eaglesong added. Ebonyfrost dipped her head, flicking her black and white mate’s ear with her own. Dragonheart curled his tail on her back.

“And the Stream Unit is ready to protect our camp, and my herb stocks are overflowing,” Ivyleaf meowed.

Rainwish stepped forward. “I’ve sent our best of the Rose Unit to scout the edges of Darkstar’s distant territory. They should be back by the full moon.”

“Then our plan will work just fine.” Aquafrost pointed to where one of the members of his unit had helped him visualize and scratch out his strategies. “We must make the first move, before they come to us.”

The unit leaders cheered, though Rainwish was somewhat held back. She’d came back to Aquafrost’s side due to her loyalty to him, which she knew would never die. She wanted her fighting days to be over, but if this was what would prevent a lot more future bloodshed, she’d do it. That was, after all, a major part of every warrior’s life, and she’d stuck to it for a long time now.

The six warriors padded out of the den in a flocking formation. The determination of the others around Rainwish was something she would not let spoil. Despite her internal doubts and worries of tomorrow, she knew her place was with them, and she would fight with everything she had to preserve the order Aquafrost had created, and the home he’d once again given her.

As the clan rallied beside them, their caterwauls of strength rose together into one. Aquafrost led the unit leaders, and Rainwish leapt into the wild alongside Eaglesong and Ivyleaf, ready to confront whatever lay ahead of them.

~~~~~

A gentle breeze of greenleaf made its way through the air as Aquafrost brushed aside the tall, bright grass to find Rainwish sitting alone in a forest clearing. The light of afternoon dappled their pelts.

“Soon,” she murmured to only him. For once in his life, he could not read her mind, so strikingly similar to his own.

He rested beside her, the ground soft underpaw. For a brief moment in time, they were one. And Pinestar and Rainwish stayed there for a while, past and future, physically and immateriality, until the hour was at last complete.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter, I know, but I've said I'll go back and edit. I'm amazed I finally got this done. And yes, a sequel is coming, but when that'll be I don't know yet. There's so much lore that Eagleshine and I need to cover. I know the second half of this chapter feels a bit out of place, but, well, you'll soon understand if you don't already.


	49. Epilogue

The teeth of the ginger beast thrust the silver she-cat aside, her body flung onto the thorn bush nearby. The world spun, but she could faintly make out her mate racing away, just as injured as she was.  _ Eh. Well, fine.  _

She heard the cries of other cats. Her daughters were losing the fight, and one of them was begging her own three kits to run. The father was already dead in the clearing.  _ I’m sorry. _

“Mistlepoppy!” Her mate was rushing back towards her, his blue-grey fur a mess.

“Don’t call me that,” she hissed, trying to sit up as he collapsed beside her. “You’ve come to die in a thorn bush, Owlgaze?”

“I figured we should spend our last breath together. Sunny and Willow are with each other.”

“And that obnoxious kittypet. I’m still upset none of his kits took after Sunny,” she coughed. “Willie. I hate that name.”

“Me too.” Owl gazed at her solemnly. “We abandoned our clans and we’ve finally paid the full price of what we’ve deserved. I’ll see you in Starclan, okay?”

“You have more faith than me, and I was a medicine cat,” she huffed, wishing she could stop her own bleeding. “I don’t think I’ll see you there. Neither of us will make it, I’m sure of it.”

Owl swallowed, glancing at the deep scratches that covered their bodies. “Goodbye, Mistle.”

“Goodbye, Owl.”

~~~~~

Mistle slowly opened her eyes to find herself still in the thorn bush. But the bodies were gone, and when she looked down, she could see the leaves through her paws.  _ So I didn’t make it. _

She got up and observed the world, shaken and confused. “Owl?” she called. “Sunny? Willow?” She slowly padded to the center of the clearing. The moon was a faint copper circle above her in the pitch dark; her kin was all long gone by now. “Anyone? Who buried us?”

“There was no need for a burial,” meowed a calm voice behind her. Mistle jumped and spun around to find an unfamiliar tom staring at her. She could see her green eyes reflected in his striking blue. “You all were eaten by the foxes.”

“Oh.” Mistle wrinkled her muzzle. “How disappointing. Sure I suck but I didn’t deserve that. Where’d everyone else go?”

The stranger shrugged. “It’s not my business. My guess is that they let go sooner and started wandering around before I could find them. Don’t worry too much about it though; we’ll find them. It’s not hard to recover the souls of the lost if you know where to start your search.” He glanced around at their surroundings. “And those beasts…” He ran a black paw over his spotted pelt. Mistle thought he looked like a great blizzard that could swallow any cat whole. “They will haunt your kin for a long time.”

“Well, that’s not my business anymore either. So far all the kits I’ve had and their kits have been disappointments.”  _ If only the one I never had a chance to name lived. _ “I couldn’t care less. I’m ready to move on.” She yawned and arched her back in a stretch. “Who are you, exactly?”

He peered at her, more curious than wary. “My name… you need not know it yet. The time is coming, and remember… There is always another, if you know where to look.” 

His white pelt flicked with dark stars as he turned away, his shadow of a tail illuminating a faint path.  _ I hoped Owl would be with me still… Was he not as bad as I? He followed my every order, enforced my every rule. _

“It’s not ever over unless you want it to be, my friend.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you don't know what a mistle is, I'll give you some definitions. Eventually you'll see why I picked that name:  
> 1\. Mistletoe (noun).  
> 2\. A kind of thrush (noun).  
> 3\. To fall like a fine rain, to drizzle (verb).
> 
> It's also a canon but rare prefix for a warrior; Snowkit's sister was named that: https://warriors.fandom.com/wiki/Mistlekit_(TPB)   
> If you recall, she's been briefly mentioned before... but I won't tell you what chapters. She's important, I promise, alongside the other cat. I just won't say how yet.


	50. Post-Epilogue

The clans that inhabited the world were many, so many more than their original five ancestors ever intended. And the five unique clans that had once stood proudly and bitterly in the homeland of the small tom had spent his first days in where becoming just as faded as their distant predecessors had. But there were still those who remembered despite everything, and those cats needed to go. It was his turn now, to write his own history. His revenge on the brother whose very existence alone had stolen everything from him would soon come to pass as the strongest of all warriors gathered under his paws. Disorganized, yes, but every cat had a place and was watched by his greatest warrior of all.

The tom jumped up onto his stone ledge, overlooking the mass of cats below. His medicine cat had predicted darkness would cover the sun soon.  _ The moment is at long last here.  _

The hour of his own darkness had finally come, and he would rule over what he had always meant to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Post-Epilogues aren't that common in books as far as I'm aware? I've only read like one book with one, and it wasn't any longer than this one. But hey, I wanted to include something from the distant villain that'll soon be as major as he was before Rain's Wish. What'll probably be next though is some novellas on our Rain's Wish villains we've already met :)


	51. End Notes

Various links:

  * Stormclan’s old blog: [http://fiftyshadesofstormclan.blogspot.com](http://fiftyshadesofstormclan.blogspot.com/)   
  

  * Mistpelt, a minor Thornclan character, is someone I don't remember but has a wiki page: <https://animal-groups-roleplay.fandom.com/wiki/User:Wolfspirit102> (I just checked and it seems their profile page is now empty? It used to say something along the lines of “join tiger210004’s Thornclan”, everything else seems to still be in place. Here's a link to a pdf of the unedited page though I luckily had saved: <https://archive.org/details/user-wolfspirit-102-animal-groups-roleplay-wiki-fandom> ).



Various details that were left out, added, or forgotten:

  * I had to make up some descriptions for cats I only had names of. The following background characters do not have accurate descriptions (their units are correct though): 
    * Streamclan: Redclaw, Fireclaw, Icefur, Rainclaw, and Greytail. 
    * Stormclan: Frostfur, Nightgaze, Cloudsky, Snowstorm, Badgerfang, Owlflight, Nightpelt, and Owlfeather.
    * Thornclan: Tigerflame, Talonclaw, Echoshadow, Shimmermist, and Hopeshine.   
  

  * I hardly remember Blazestar. I don’t even know what her true Warrior name was, so I just went with Blazewing to fit her attention-seeking motive. Most of what’s been written here was info reintroduced to me by Eagleshine herself, so special thanks to her. I squished Blazestar into the plot with foxes since she never had any involvement with me after she left.  
  

  * Redclaw, Fireclaw, and Rainclaw are brothers here, but I don’t remember them being so during the roleplay. Fireclaw and Icefur weren’t mates as far as I know, and didn’t have any kits.   
  

  * Hailstar was another random cat who joined as far as my memory goes. Palespot is based off a cat I forgot the name of that supported me. I don’t think I had an apprentice when I (Rainwish) became the deputy. I made Hailstar and Palespot siblings.  
  

  * I’m not even sure if her name was Leaftail during Streamclan, when Eagleshine argues it was Ivyleaf the entire time, but it’s what I remember.   
  

  * Inktail, a cat who appears in the Thornclan allegiances as well, was a real-life friend’s character she made when we talked about Warriors once. I promised her years ago I would include her somewhere when I finally wrote this, and I did :)



Here’s what ended up being left out on purpose:

  * Bluestream is chosen for a battle with another clan and Stonefur isn’t. She dies in battle and he’s devastated; she comes back as his new apprentice Redpaw. He eventually takes on another mate, Brownpelt, and had 8 daughters and 2 sons in one entire litter, yikes. She messaged me looking for a mate and I set them up :)  
  

  * A minor change in Streamclan’s allegiances that I couldn’t fit: Icefur - pure white she-cat with blue eyes; mother of Fireclaw’s kits: Hailkit, a big tomkit with grey and white fur with black ears, paws, and tail tip, and Palekit, a white, grey, and pale ginger she-kit.  
  

  * I did some searching a while back and found out that Darkstar of Stormclan’s warrior name was Darkshadow. I’m glad I found this out because it can help me further differentiate him from Darkheart/star, Aquafrost’s brother.   
  

  * There's some more to Thornclan's story, as that ending probably wasn't very satisfying, but don't worry, the ending of that clan will be covered in the future sequel of Rain's Wish, Eagle's Shine. Look forward to that! Mapleshade/Eaglesong is a main character and her name becomes Eagleshine. I've mentioned her a lot in the notes and she's been a huge help, too bad I don't remember much more of our childhood when it comes to serious roleplay than what's been recorded here :(



**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well... I'm glad these notes formatted into AO3 okay. Next is the long-awaited list of usernames!


	52. Animal Jam Usernames

Unfortunately, quite a few of the following Animal Jam accounts have been deleted or lost to time and forgotten. Please read through these to see if you can identify anyone. If you know anything, even something super small, please contact me. Some of these cats don’t make any appearance at all or are simply listed in the allegiances, and some of these usernames are a bit strange, but we were all kids, so… no hard judgement, okay? Not much is known when it comes to Fer.al usernames but that is included here as well. This page is for your reference as well as my own. Help me improve it!

Warrior Name

| 

Animal Jam Name

| 

Fer.al Name  
  
---|---|---  
| 

**StreamClan/ThornClan**

|   
  
Rainwish/Greyspot

| 

ae51021 (Backup: rainwish52)

| 

Rainwish (Backups: rainwish52 and ae51021)  
  
Mapleshine/Eaglesong

| 

Tigress10004

| 

eagleshine  
  
Aquafrost/Pinestar

| 

tiger210004

| 

???  
  
Rockbreeze

| 

Thequeenoftheorcas

| 

???  
  
Dragonheart

| 

aquastarsuncle

| 

???  
  
Ebonyfrost

| 

tigergirl10004

| 

???  
  
Leaftail/Ivyleaf

| 

thequeenofstarclan

| 

???  
  
Ravenwing

| 

xxravenshinexx

| 

???  
  
Mistpelt

| 

Wolfspirit102

| 

???  
  
| 

**StormClan**

|   
  
Darkshadow/star

| 

fox0107

| 

fox0107  
  
Stonefur

| 

hiimwatchingu

| 

???  
  
Summerstorm/Hawkflight

| 

imapuffle/macandcheesegod (same account)

| 

ch0rtl3  
  
Robinflight/Earthkit

| 

Pinkclaw24

| 

???  
  
Shadewhisker/Lilacpaw

| 

kdertyr

| 

???  
  
Nightgaze

| 

CrystalGirl7024

| 

???  
  
Owlflight

| 

uric4

| 

???  
  
Fernflower

| 

mlp427

| 

???  
  
Amberheart

| 

mikeygr8 

| 

???  
  
| 

**Other**

|   
  
Darkheart/star

| 

???

| 

???  
  
Pinefall

| 

???

| 

???  
  
Blazestar

| 

Darkflower5

| 

???  
  
Thank you again for reading Rain’s Wish. If you have a link to anything new with information or were a part of this roleplay, please, PLEASE contact me. I go by Rainwish52 on most sites; I’m easily found. I won’t disappear again, and I’ll finish things this time around, I promise. I've written long fanfiction before, but let me tell you how much of a relief it is to finally have this done. I can't forget anything and now I'm guaranteed to not. Maybe I'll remember more one day and maybe, just maybe, I'll get to see some of you again. Eagleshine and I are two old crazy cat ladies who have been waiting for some company for far too long.


End file.
